New Delhi: Indian Oil Corporation wants to be India’s leading energy supplier, supplying 1/8th of India’s energy needs by 2050, increasing its contribution from 9 percent to 12.5 percent and is also planning a ramp-up of its refining capacity to achieve the goal, Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) SM Vaidya told PSU Watch. Speaking about Indian Oil’s growth strategy ahead of India Energy Week (IEW), Vaidya said, “We are exploring a broad bouquet of green energy pathways, where different forms of energy complement each other to meet the country’s growing needs.”
“Currently, the Indian and global energy landscape is at an inflection point, with the threats posed by climate change looming large. The recent COP28 conference saw a global consensus, for the first time, to transition away from fossil fuels in a just, orderly, and equitable manner. India, being one of the largest energy consumers, is already ramping up renewable and non-conventional energy sources for catering to its rapidly growing energy demand. Over the next few years, the country will add 50 GW of renewable energy options annually and is expected to meet 500 GW of installed renewable capacity by 2030,” said the Indian Oil CMD.
Indian Oil enhancing its refining capabilities: CMD
“As the ‘Energy of India’, we are enhancing our refining capabilities to strengthen the national energy security, while also actively steering India's vision of becoming net-zero by 2070. Our wide spectrum of green transition pathways will also help realise the goal of becoming operational net-zero (Scope I & 2) by 2046,” said Vaidya.
Indian Oil’s green vision includes expanding in areas like biofuels, green hydrogen ecosystem and carbon offsetting through ecosystem restoration. “We are also investing in EV charging infrastructure and have already set up over 7,000 stations across the country. We are thus transforming from a traditional fossil fuel company to an integrated energy company,” said the IOC CMD.
‘Indian Oil on track to ramp up refining capacity to 107 MMTPA by 2025-26’
Commenting on India Oil’s future strategy for growth, Vaidya said, “Our future growth plans are centered around embracing sustainable energy and enhancing our core business to meet the country’s rising energy demands. In tune with India’s vision of augmenting its refining capacity to 450 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA), Indian Oil is investing in several capacity expansion and petrochemical integration projects. We are on track to become a 107 MMTPA refining company by 2025-26 from the current capacity of 80.55 MMTPA. Furthermore, the integration of petrochemicals in our refining investments is a strategic move to meet India's petrochemical demand that is on a high growth trajectory and dependent on imports. At the same time, we are also steering India’s green transition and exploring multiple sustainable energy pathways.”