(file picture)Prime Minister Narendra Modi

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will dedicate India’s first greenfield integrated refinery-cum-petrochemical complex to the nation on Saturday at Pachpadra in Balotra (Rajasthan), marking a landmark achievement in the country’s energy and petrochemical sector.Developed as a joint venture between Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) and the Government of Rajasthan, the 9 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) Greenfield Refinery-cum-Petrochemical Complex has been established with an investment of over ₹79,450 crore.(HPCL) holds 74 per cent stake in HRRL, while Rajasthan government holds 26 per cent in the complex.The state-of-the-art complex integrates refining and petrochemical production, with a petrochemical capacity of 2.4 MMTPA. The refinery features a high Nelson Complexity Index of 17.0 and petrochemical yields exceeding 26 per cent, aligning with global benchmarks for efficiency and sustainability.Pivotal roleThe project is expected to play a pivotal role in strengthening India’s energy security, enhancing petrochemical self-sufficiency, and driving industrial growth. It will serve as an anchor industry for the development of a Petrochemical and Plastic Park in the region, promoting downstream industries and ancillary sectors. Additionally, the refinery is poised to generate significant employment opportunities, contributing to the socio-economic development of the region.The refinery was originally scheduled to be inaugurated by the Prime Minister on April 21, 2026, but had to be cancelled due to a fire in its Crude Distillation Unit (CDU) a day earlier.The Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoPNG) had set up a four-member team to investigate the fire incident in the refinery, which is led by ex-Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals (MRPL) Managing Director M Venkatesh. Besides, HPCL has also formed an internal team to investigate the fire incident. The reports are still awaited.At the tine of the incident, HPCL had said that prima facie, it appears that leakage of hydrocarbons through one of the valves and/or flanges in the heat exchanger circuit caused the fire.On June 18, HPCL in a BSE filing said that the CDU restoration work has been completed and the Unit has been successfully started. All product streams from the CDU/ VDU are being produced and routed to the respective tanks for downstream processing.Published on July 3, 2026