HPCL commissions India's first residue hydrocracking unit

India has commissioned the Residue Upgradation Facility (RUF) at Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited’s (HPCL) Visakh Refinery, making it the country’s first operational residue hydrocracking unit.

The new facility enhances the refinery’s ability to process heavier and opportunity crudes, converting the most challenging bottom-of-the-barrel residues into high-value fuels. This improves operational flexibility and strengthens resilience against volatility in global crude oil supply and pricing, HPCL said in a LinkedIn post.

The RUF, located at Visakh Refinery, has a capacity of 3.55 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA). It deploys advanced residue hydrocracking technology to achieve a conversion rate of around 93 per cent, maximising value extraction from every barrel of crude processed.

A key highlight of the project is its strong indigenous engineering content. The facility houses three LC-Max reactors, each weighing approximately 2,200 metric tonnes, ranking among the heaviest engineering blocks globally. All three reactors were fabricated and assembled domestically, underscoring India’s growing capabilities in complex, large-scale refinery engineering.

“This critical infrastructure in Andhra Pradesh is a decisive leap towards Aatmanirbhar Bharat, under the visionary leadership of PM Narendra Modi and CM N Chandra Babu Naidu,” Hardeep Singh Puri, Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said in LinkedIn post.

ALCHEMPro News Desk (HU)