Many international and local companies which includes Mitsubishi Corporation, BASF and Manali Petrochemicals have shown interest in setting up units in the petrochemical park being set up in Kochi jointly by the Kerala government and Bharat Petroleum Corporation. The park will house micro, small and medium downstream petrochemical units that can use raw materials available from BPCL Kochi Refinery's upcoming propylene derivative petrochemical project (PDPP). The first phase of PDPP involves an investment of Rs 5,200 crore and will be completed in 2019. “At present several petrochemicals are imported and processed in states like Gujarat and Maharashtra and transported to Kerala. Since the units can be set up near the source of supply here, cost can be considerably reduced," said AN Sreeram, general manager-petrochem, BPCL Kochi Refinery. The company has potential to produce 5 lakh tonnes of propylene.
