HPCL to rework Rajasthan oil refinery terms.

In an effort to revive its Rs. 37,230-crore refinery-cum-petrochemical complex plan in Rajasthan's Barmer district, centrally owned Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) might sign a fresh memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the state government.

After taking office last December, state chief minister Vasundhara Raje had raised objections to the fiscal concessions proposed for the nine-million-tonne project, for which Sonia Gandhi, national head of the then ruling party at Centre and state, had laid the foundation stone before the election. 'To keep the plan afloat, the company is now in talks to rework the MoU signed with the Ashok Gehlot government last year,' said an official.

'In the earlier meeting with us, the CM expressed unhappiness over the fiscal terms. This specifically included the previous government’s offer to provide an interest-free loan for 15 years. We may be reworking that soon,' said a company official. The state government had agreed to offer an interest-free loan from 2016-17 to 2030-31, to be repaid in annual installments from 2031-32.


BS