Indian Oil to upgrade Haldia refinery

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is planning a capital expenditure of around Rs7,500 crores (US$1.69 billion) in 2007-08 to upgrade its refineries, Chairman Sarthak Behuria said. He said IOC would invest Rs2,000 crores (US$451.16 million) in a joint venture with Reliance Industries to sell natural gas to households and compressed natural gas (CNG) as an auto fuel through the proposed pipelines of Reliance.  “We have initiated talks for a 50:50 joint venture for city gas distribution projects along the pipeline Reliance Industries is laying from its offshore KG basin field,” Behuria, said. (January 12, 2007)