TransCanada, the company behind the proposed 1.1 million barrels per day Energy East pipeline, has said the pipeline could open new export markets for tar sands crude, including to the Reliance Industries Ltd.-owned refinery complex in Jamnagar, India.
What do we know about where Alberta tar sands crude could be refined in India?
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Reliance operates two refineries at Jamnagar near the village of Moti Khavdi on the southern coast of the Gulf of Kutch in the western state of Gujarat.
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The two refineries can process a combined 1.24 million barrels of crude oil per day.
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The refinery commissioned in July 1999, which can handle 668,000 barrels per day, is the largest in the world.
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In December 2008, the refinery was commissioned into a Special Economic Zone in Jamnagar.
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The refinery has a desalination plant that can process more than 12 million gallons of water per day.
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The United Nation`s 2009 Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change says that Gujarat ranks third in the country for greenhouse gas emissions.
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The UN report also says emissions from the Reliance refinery makes Jamnagar the district with the second highest level of GHG emissions in India after Surat.
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In July 2013, Reliance Industries proposed to expand its Jamnagar refinery.
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The Jamnagar Reliance Petrochemical Complex is spread out over 7,400 acres.
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The refinery has port facilities at Kandla and its own jetty to receive raw materials.
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About 70 per cent of the crude imported is transported on Very Large Crude Carriers (which typically can carry about 2.1 million barrels of oil).
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Reliance Industries is one of India’s largest private company, its head office is located in Ahmedabad, India.
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In the last quarter of 2013, Reliance Industries made an operating profit of 54.8 billion rupees ($889 million).
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Essar Oil also operates a refinery near the town of Vadinar in Gujarat.
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The petrochemical plants in Jamnagar handle 80 per cent of India’s oil imports.
Alberta Oil magazine has reported, “With India’s energy demands set to increase sharply, (Alberta premier Alison) Redford is trying to sell the country’s industry leaders on Alberta oil. …TransCanada Corp.’s proposed Energy East project could play a key role in building that trade relationship with India. In a 2013 interview with Alberta Oil, New Brunswick’s premier explained that the port of Saint John, where the Energy East project would end, offers a shorter shipping route to India than Canada’s West Coast.”
The Globe and Mail has also reported, “A number of Indian companies are in ‘discussions’ to acquire or invest in Alberta’s energy companies. Private and state-owned companies are exploring potential purchases of the Alberta oil-sands properties owned by ConocoPhillips Co. …The energy industry is escalating efforts to send oil tankers to India and China by way of the east coast. It is shorter to reach India’s west coast refining hub via Canada’s east coast than it is to ship oil off the west coast…”
The Energy East pipeline has received a public expression of support by India’s High Commissioner to Canada Nirmal Verma.
