Reliance's Jamnagar 'super' refinery completes 25 yrs of operations
gasoline and gasoil to Europe and the US. Today, Jamnagar has become the world's refining hub — an engineering marvel that is India's pride. When Reliance Industries Ltd, India's most valuable company, first spoke of building an oil refinery to process and convert crude oil pumped out of ground and from below seabed, into fuels like petrol (gasoline) and diesel (gasoil), majority of the experts had said that it would be impossible for an Indian company to set up the world's largest grassroots refinery in three years.
ET Year-end Special Reads
What kept India's stock market investors on toes in 2024?
India's car race: How far EVs went in 2024
Investing in 2025: Six wealth management trends to watch out for
But Reliance achieved that in a world-record time of just 33 months, notwithstanding lack of infrastructure and a severe cyclone that had hit Jamnagar then, sources aware of the matter said.
More importantly, the 27 million tonnes a year (560,000 barrels per day) capacity unit was built at nearly 40 per cent lesser cost (per tonne) in comparison to contemporary refineries in Asia. The unit was later expanded to 33 million tonnes.
When Reliance founder chairman Dhirubhai Ambani wanted to pursue his long-cherished dream of setting up a refinery, he was offered land in the barren and desolate region off Jamnagar, near a sleepy village called Motikhavdi.
Leading world-class project consultants advised Dhirubhai against investing in the desert-like region that did not have roads, electricity, or even sufficient
