India adding 50 million metric tons per annum refining capacity, says Minister

NEW DELHI: India is adding 50 million metric tons per annum in new refining capacity, the Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri, has said. This is to prepare for a doubling of energy demand in India by 2045, according to current estimates, and taking into account that the country is already the third largest oil consumer in the world. 'In the new world which we are seeing take shape, we will have three or four refining hubs in the world,' Puri said in a media interaction. India will be one of them. The Minister said 'India is where the energy story is really thriving.' Exxon, Chevron, Petrobras, Petronas, BP are among the global energy giants which want to come to India, he said. 'Why? Because this is where the growth in demand is.' India is already the world's fourth largest refiner. He said India has more than 100 biogas plants which are already functional and another 100 such plants are being set up in Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state. Second generation ethanol will be made from agricultural waste at these plants. Puri reiterated the Indian government's confidence that net zero can be achieved much before the target year of 2070. 'Net zero is a very big thing for a developing country like India. But I think it can be achieved before 2070.' Source: Emirates News Agency