A source familiar with the matter said that Royal Dutch Shell plans to take 50% of Nayara Energy’s stake in a petrochemical project in India, signaling that global oil majors have been increasingly interested in expanding their positions in the vast Indian market.
The project would construct a 1.8 mtpa of full steam ethylene cracker, linked downstream units, along with a 10.75 mtpa of the aromatics complex. The facility would locate in Vadinar in western Gujarat with a cost of around USD8-9 billion. It is planned to be completed in five years.
In early June, Shell and Nayara had signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with an equal joint venture to be established to build the project. Nayara’s board of directors meetings had discussed the petrochemical joint venture between the company and Shell in November and December 2019, according to another source.
Both Shell and Nayara did not comment on the news.
