Guwahati (Assam) [India], July 28 : Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), the statutory authority on inland waterways in the country under the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW), transported the heaviest Over Dimensional Cargos (cargo or goods that exceed a vehicle's dimensions) meant for Numaligarh Refinery’s (NRL) expansion project.
The cumulative weight of the three ODCs is more than 3275 tonnes.
The heaviest of the three is at 1286 tonnes, making it the single largest ODC ever to be transported via the Brahmaputra. The other two ODCs are weighed at 1248 tonne and 741.12 tonne, respectively.
All three ODCs started sailing from Kolkata through Indo Bangladesh Protocol Route (IBPR) to Assam in India.
IWAI is transporting as many as 24 ODCs for the NRL expansion project as per an MoU signed in 2021.
“It is a watershed moment for the inland waterways transportation of India as its efficiency and efficacy as an alternative mode is now successfully established,” Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and Ayush, Sarbananda Sonowal said.
“The successful transit of heavy ODCs going upstream from Kolkata to Numaligarh is a manifestation of the immense possibilities that Inland waterways possess for India, and especially for Assam and the Northeast,” he said.
The Assam government has a 26 per cent stake in NRL.
NRL is the largest refinery in northeast India, with a capacity of 3 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA) and is currently implementing a mega refinery expansion project to triple its refining capacity to 9 MMTPA along with laying a trans-national crude oil pipeline from Paradip in Odisha.
NRL is currently implementing projects involving investments to the tune of Rs 35,000 crores in the region and is recognised as one of the largest investments in the oil and gas sector.
In a significant milestone, the Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL) in Assam has recently been upgraded from 'Schedule B' to 'Schedule A' category Central Public Sector Enterprises by the Centre.
The upgradation to 'Schedule A' was notified by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas on July 4, 2023.
The upgradation to Schedule A will now make NRL eligible to achieve the status of Navratna which in turn will give higher financial autonomy. The Navratna companies have the autonomy to invest up to Rs 1,000 crore without seeking approval from the central government.
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