Essar Oil first to get crude from Cairn’s Rajasthan pipeline

With the government allowing private refiners to buy crude from Cairn India's fields in Rajasthan, Essar Oil's Vadinar refinery yesterday became the first recipient of the crude oil from India's biggest inland discovery in two decades through the world's longest heated pipeline.

Reliance Industries Ltd's Jamnagar refinery will get the piped crude in the next three or four days, and IndianOil's Koyali refinery by the month-end.

RIL is expected to take 75,000 bpd (barrels per day) and Essar 30,000 bpd, in tandem with rise in Cairn's production.

While Essar will process Cairn's crude for the first time, RIL, has however, taken 11 parcels of the oil which was first sent in truck-tankers to the Kandla port for onward shipment to its Jamnagar refinery.

The 590-km long Barmer to Salaya section of the Barmer to Bhogat pipeline (670 km), run by Cairn India and its joint venture partner ONGC, is now operational with oil supplies having commenced to the private refineries from the delivery point at Salaya, said Rahul Dhir, managing director and chief executive officer, Cairn India.

Sale of crude oil to Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) through the pipeline is also expected to start soon.