Bhubaneswar: Good news for Odisha as the State is set to play a significant role for the expansion of crude oil storage after an agreement signed between India and the UAE on Friday. The MoU mentions the proposed strategic oil reserve in Odisha’s Chandikhol.
Sources said the UAE is to store 30 million barrels of crude oil in India’s strategic petroleum reserves and Odisha is set to play a major role in the proposed project. The most significant outcome of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s brief visit to the UAE was the MoU on collaboration between Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Limited and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), aimed at substantially deepening bilateral energy security cooperation.
Sources said over 400 acres of land has already been identified near Dankari hill region of Chandikhol for the strategic oil reserve project. If everything moves in the right direction, global tender for construction of the oil reserve will open soon.
Under the agreement, ADNOC may store up to 30 million barrels of crude oil in India’s strategic petroleum reserve facilities, including participation in storage infrastructure at Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and future reserve facilities in Chandikhol, Odisha.
The pact also envisages the possible storage of Indian crude reserves in Fujairah in the UAE, a move expected to significantly strengthen India’s emergency energy preparedness and supply chain resilience amid global geopolitical uncertainties. Envisioned as the world’s largest underground crude oil storage facility, the proposed project with a capacity of 4 MMT crude oil is estimated to cost: around Rs 8,700 crore.
The project will need around $1 billion for development and another $2 billion to fill the reserves. The project will act as a major strategic infrastructure boost for Odisha and India’s energy security.
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