Australia is looking into building a major oil refinery as part of efforts to secure its fuel resources, exploring the plans against the backdrop of unstable global supply chains amid the conflict in the Middle East.

Experts say a new refinery would need to use imported oil and question how it would be competitive.

Vikas Rambal has built Perdaman into an industrial manufacturing giant, and has now embarked on a pre-feasibility study for an oil plant in Western Australia.

By XIN XIN and ALEXIS HOOI in Sydney |