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Quake hits industrial facilities; Reliance says Jamnagar plant is safe

Rediff Money Bureau in Bombay

The RD Killer Quake: Complete coverage on rediff

The gas terminals at Bijapur in Gujarat of the Gas Authority of India Limited's Hazira-Bijaipur-Jagdishpur (HBJ) pipeline were damaged in the killer earthquake of Friday.

Media reported heavy leakages of gas from the terminals. The pipeline moves natural gas from Hazira in Gujarat to Jagdishpur in Uttar Pradesh via Bijaipur.

The Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Limited's refinery at Baroda has suffered some damage. Early reports indicated that the Indian Oil Corporation's refinery in the same city has also been affected.

But other major industrial installations in Gujarat have escaped major damages during the killer earthquake.

Media reports indicated that Reliance Petroleum's Jamnagar petrochemicals project, the largest grassroots refinery in the world, its captive power plant, and the people manning the ventures, are safe and functioning. This implies that product supplies will continue uninterrupted.

The media reports, however, were based on information supplied by company spokespersons. There were conflicting reports on whether the Jamnagar plant had temporarily shut down. Breakdown of general communication links added to the confusion.

The Reliance group has one more plant at Hazira, which is also reportedly safe. The two projects together produce about 75 per cent of India's largest industrial group's output. Reliance's annual capacity is estimated at nine million tonnes of petrochemicals.

Another major venture at Hazira, the Essar Steel plant, sustained damages. But media reports said operations are on without any interruption.

The Kutch region in Gujarat, which bore the brunt of the earth's fury, is also home to several other ventures. But almost all of them are safe. For instance, the port at Mundra, the largest such private enterprise with liquid storage facilities, is functioning as usual.

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