Minister for petroleum and natural gas, skill development & entrepreneurship Dharmendra Pradhan has lauded the state run Indian Oil Corporation and IDCO (Industrial Development Corporation of Odisha) for signing a pact to establish a plastic park at Paradip in Odisha.

Pradhan was speaking at the inaugural of Petrochemical Investors Conclave in Bhubaneswar.

He said that India’s petrochemicals sector is growing at the rate of 14-15 percent annually. Odisha, with ready availability of raw material from Paradip refinery and other units from all over the country, skilled, low-cost manpower, port infrastructure and rail connectivity and a large regional market, must utilise the opportunity to create investment opportunities in the downstream industries such as Plastic Park and Textiles Park in the state, he said.

Besides, IOCL is setting up a 700 kilo tonnes per annum Polypropylene unit at Paradip refinery, to be commissioned in 2018 which would serve as a mother plant for downstream polymer/plastics ancillary units.

IOC and Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT), Mumbai have also inked a MoU to set up a campus of ICT in Bhubaneswar.

Similarly, IOCL has collaborated with MCPI Ltd. for setting up a Textiles Park in Odisha.

While the per capita consumption of plastics in India is only 10 kg as compared to the world average of 32 kg, it is much lower at 5 kg in eastern India, he said.