Last updated : June 29, 2026 9:16 am
We shall leverage presence of large anchor facilities such as IOCL’s 15 MMTPA refinery and upcoming dual-feed cracker in Paradip to propose downstream chemical parks which shall benefit from steady feedstock, port access, and attractive incentives for chemical sector
In an exclusive interview with Pravin Prashant, Executive Editor, Indian Chemical News, Aboli Naravane, MD, Industrial Promotion & Investment Corporation of Odisha Limited (IPICOL), Government of Odisha talks about Odisha's stand in Chemical Park Competition; Odisha's coastal port facilities; fiscal and non-fiscal incentives provided by Odisha government for chemical, petrochemical, fertilizer, hydrogen, and CCUS companies; and assurance related to land, water, and skilled labour. Excerpts of the interview:
The Department of Chemicals & Petrochemicals (DCPC) is planning a Plug and Play Chemical Park Scheme for three parks through a challenge route for states. What is the total area and investment made by Odisha for the park and where does Odisha stand in Chemical Park Competition vis-a-vis other states?
We welcome Plug and Play Chemical Park announced in 2026 Union Budget while detailed guidelines for the challenge-based selection framework are still awaited, Odisha has already identified large, contiguous land parcels along its coastal industrial corridors. Odisha is well positioned to present a competitive proposal owing to its ports, industrial infrastructure, and petrochemical ecosystem. We shall leverage presence of large anchor facilities such as IOCL’s 15 MMTPA refinery and upcoming dual-feed cracker in Paradip to propose downstream chemical parks which shall benefit from steady feedstock, port access, and attractive incentives for chemical sector. Many chemical industries like UPL, Deepak Nitrate, SRF, etc. are coming up at Gopalpur as well. Dhamra, our next destination is also attracting chemical industries.
Odisha is blessed with ports and is already aligning its PCPIR in Paradip with models like Singapore's Jurong Petrochemicals Complex. Are you looking to develop any of Odisha’s coastal port facilities into a specialized chemical and green hydrogen hub similar to the Port of Antwerp Bruges or Jurong to become a premier chemical hub in Asia?
Odisha is already developing world class industrial clusters in vicinity of it’s major deep-water that integrate chemicals, petrochemicals, green fuels, and downstream manufacturing leveraging the state’s strategic coastline and ease of logistics. Paradip region anchored by the PCPIR is an integrated chemical and petrochemical cluster with strong linkages to refining, fertilizers, and downstream chemicals.
Anchored by IOCL’s refinery, the region has attracted several petrochemical and polymer industries such as Numaligarh Refinery, Laxmi Organic, SMVD Polypack, and Dhunseri Ventures. Along with Gopalpur and Dhamra, there is also a major hub for upstream agrochemical manufacturers such as IFFCO, PPL, Deepak Fertilizers, Utkal Phosphates, UPL, and Kiri Industries.
We have also developed a Plastics Park spread over 200 acres near Paradip PCPIR with IOCL as the anchor tenant, which ensures a committed feedstock of critical inputs such as ethylene, propylene, PE/PP, paraxylene, butadiene, and other high/low density polymers. Within the park is also located the CIPET Plastics Product Evaluation Centre providing designing, testing, and technical support to plastics manufacturers in the park.
Gopalpur Port Region in Ganjam is being developed as a world class green hydrogen and green ammonia hub where major players like ACME Clean Energy, Avaada Green H2, Ocior Energy, and Torrent Green Hydrogen have setup their units to leverage global offtake opportunities.
Odisha has a track record of high investment conversion rates. What specific assurances can you give investors regarding land acquisition, water allocation, and skilled labour for these specialized chemical sectors?
Odisha offers large contiguous industrial land parcels, particularly in the vicinity of major ports, supported by ready infrastructure such as approach roads and utility connectivity and record timelines for land allocation through GO-SWIFT, our single window platform for clearances. We also have SEZ model such as Tata Steel SEZ near Gopalpur port with over 1,400 acres of land pre-approved environmental clearances. We also have ready-to-move-in land parcels available near Dhamra.
Odisha is uniquely positioned for water intensive industries with nearly 11% of India’s surface water resources. Our major chemical clusters at Paradip and Gopalpur have assured water supply through perennial river systems such as Mahanadi and Rushikulya, further strengthened by our investments in dedicated water projects such as the upcoming 300 MLD in-stream water storage at Paradip.
Odisha combines a strong technical talent pipeline with targeted industry skilling initiatives. The state is home to premier institutions such as CIPET, ICT, IIT Bhubaneswar, NIT Rourkela, and BPUT offering world class chemical engineering programs. Specialized training programs are conducted through Odisha Skill Development Authority in chemical, petrochemical, and rubber, along with plastics and polymers processing programs at CIPET to ensure ready talent pipeline for the sector.
Capital-intensive sectors like fertilizers, chemicals, and gasification inherently generate high carbon footprints. How is Odisha integrating Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) into its future industrial master plan?
We are closely tracking developments in carbon capture technologies and believe industrial clusters such as Paradip and Angul can provide scale, concentrated emission sources, and infrastructure synergies needed to support future CCUS projects as technology matures. We have attracted players like ReNew E-Fuels (REFPL) which will be setting up a 300 KT/annum carbon capture unit.
The Vikshit Odisha Vision Document for 2036/2047 has established seven key interventions to achieve our decarbonization and green energy ambitions. This includes formation of a cross-departmental task force composed of key stakeholders like industries, FE & CC, and water resources to identify and track the role of emerging technologies like carbon sink, carbon capture and storage and ensure timely implementation.
Odisha is already an early adopter of low-carbon practices in metallurgy, with several companies adopting Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) process which utilizes syngas in Blast Furnaces instead of conventional fossil fuel methods?
Odisha plans to produce 3 MTPA of green hydrogen by 2036 which shall boost green manufacturing, which becomes imperative in the light of international mandates such as Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). Furthermore, we already have companies like Waaree, Luminous, Sova Solar, Inox Solar, etc. who are setting up their solar module units in the state. The combined module manufacturing capacity would reach more than 40 GW of solar cell and module. This will be the key to developing solar harnessing capacity of the country and in turn reduce dependence on fossil-fuel electricity, lower greenhouse gas emissions, support cleaner industrial growth, and improve energy sustainability—thereby significantly reducing the overall carbon footprint over time.
Is Odisha also looking at Hydrogen Valley and CCUS Valley. If yes, by when? Salient features of the Hydrogen Valley and CCUS valley Policy?
Under Odisha’s Green Hydrogen Policy and IPR 2022, manufacturers are eligible for thrust sector incentives – the highest eligible category of incentives being allowed. This includes land at concessional rates with 100% stamp duty exemption, 100% exemption from payment of electricity duty and reimbursement of power tariff at Rs. 3 per unit for a period of 20 years, reimbursement of 100% of net SGST paid overall (limited to 200% of the cost of P&M), and 100% reimbursement of employer contribution towards ESI and EPF Scheme for a period of seven years. Through hubs such as Paradip and Gopalpur, Odisha is creating integrated green hydrogen ecosystem including production, utilization, and export units.
What role do you see Odisha playing in building a domestic supply chain for green hydrogen components, like electrolyser manufacturing?
Odisha plans to achieve installed green hydrogen capacity of 1 MMTPA by 2029 and 3 MMTPA by 2036. This shall create a significant demand for components such as electrolyzers, purification systems, compressors, and gas processing units. We plan to fulfil this incremental demand from units manufacturing within the state. The IPR-2022 categorizes Green Energy Equipment including green hydrogen components, electrolysers, etc. under thrust sector enabling the highest possible incentives. We have attracted manufacturers like Waaree Clean Energy Solutions and Surya International Enterprise for hydrogen electrolyser units.
Plastic waste management is a massive environmental challenge. How is Odisha driving circular economy principles? How can initiatives like the Petrochemicals Research & Innovation Commendation (PRIC) Scheme scale up breakthroughs in polymer recycling?
The Vikshit Odisha Vision Document outlines a roadmap for achieving sustainable outcomes like circular economy by facilitating startups and high-potential ventures through Rs. 10,000 crore fund of funds. We are populating our greentech ecosystem with high impact circular economy players such as IDVB Recycling, Sanyam tie-up, Himadri Green Technologies innovation, and many more Initiatives such as the PRIC Scheme shall act as innovation catalysts, encouraging players in the sector to invest in frontier technology for sustainable materials and advanced recycling operations.
Rapid expansion requires a massive influx of technical talent. How is Odisha upgrading curricula to meet modern demands like automation and digital twinning on the one hand and coal gasification, CCUS, and hydrogen on the other?
Odisha has come up with major skilling interventions for all the aforementioned sectors. Odisha witnessed a 2 MoUs during CM’s visit to Singapore. First, Nanyang Technological University, GRIDCO, and IIT BBSR in the new energy sector. Second, SD & TE department Odisha and the ITE Education Services, Singapore on advanced manufacturing. These MoU strengthen our capacity to impart world class training in digital manufacturing methods as well as clean energy generation. Our World Skill Centre at Bhubaneswar, operated with our Singaporean counterparts, are being trained with global skill requirements, including automation, digital twinning, and similar attributes. The green hydrogen course offered by Directorate of Skill Development focuses on full lifecycle of green hydrogen projects starting from technical/economical feasibility to plant installation. The Directorate of Skill Development in collaboration with Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer, IIT Delhi is offering courses on blockchain, computer vision, IoT and AI, which helps to build a talent pipeline for Industry 5.0 manufacturing processes.
What fiscal and non-fiscal interventions should Odisha undertake to enable India's chemical sector to reach US $1 trillion and a 12% GVC share by 2040, as recommended by NITI Aayog?
India’s chemical market will have to achieve an incremental around $750 billion valuation to reach NITI Aayog’s recommended GVC share by 2040. Most of this growth shall be driven by scaling up exports in petrochemical and derivative chemicals, thus placing Odisha at a pivotal position to achieve this target. To this effect, Odisha has been implementing all seven of the key interventions recommended by NITI Aayog’s 2025 report. Key infrastructure and ecosystem interventions have already been discussed earlier, specifically in the areas of establishing chemical hubs (Intervention 1), developing port infrastructure (intervention 2) and talent & skill upgradation (intervention 7) while intervention 3 focuses on Opex subsidy scheme for chemicals, Odisha is already providing best in class fiscal incentives for chemical sector players such as 30% capital investment subsidy (without upper cap), 100% exemption on payment of electricity duty for 10 years, Zero stamp duty on land allocation, and 100% reimbursement on net SGST paid (limited to 200% of plant & machinery cost). These incentives ensure long term operational competitiveness for chemical sector players.