Fire Erupts at Rajasthan Oil Refinery: Causes, Impact and Latest Updates

Fire Erupts at Rajasthan Oil Refinery Complex: Causes, Impact and Latest Updates

A fire broke out at the Rajasthan Oil Refinery Complex—get details on the incident, response efforts, possible causes, and its impact on operations and safety.

Context: A major fire broke out at the HPCL Rajasthan Refinery Limited (HRRL) complex in Balotra, just before its inauguration.

More about the news:

The fire occurred near the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU) due to a hydrocarbon leakage in a valve/flange system. CDU is:
- First and most critical unit in the refinery
- Separates crude oil into fractions like petrol, diesel, kerosene, and LPG
- Feeds further processing units. Any disruption in CDU can affect the entire refinery operations.

About HPCL Rajasthan Oil Refinery Complex

HPCL Rajasthan Refinery Complex is located at Pachpadra (Balotra district)
Developed by HPCL Rajasthan Refinery Limited, a JV of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (74%) and the Rajasthan Govt (26%)
Integrated Refinery and Petrochemical Complex: Combines fuel refining + petrochemical production (higher value addition). It produces key products:
- Polypropylene
- LLDPE/HDPE (plastics)
- Butadiene, Benzene, Toluene → Used in plastics, textiles, packaging, chemicals industries.

Rajasthan Oil and Gas Fields

Rajasthan is India’s largest onshore crude oil producer, mainly from the Barmer–Sanchore basin. Rajasthan is also a major onshore natural gas producer (2nd largest).
Production and Reserves
- Crude Oil: ~150 million barrels of proven reserves in the Barmer basin
- Resource Potential: Estimated 4–7+ billion barrels of oil equivalent (in-place)
- Natural Gas: ~10.8 BCM reserves across Rajasthan basins
Barmer–Sanchore Basin (Core Region):
- Located in western Rajasthan (Barmer, Jalore districts)
- One of the largest inland hydrocarbon discoveries in India (2000s)

Major Oil Fields

Mangala Field:
- India’s largest onshore oil field
- Part of Mangala–Bhagyam–Aishwariya (MBA) cluster
- Peak production ~200,000 barrels/day
Bhagyam & Aishwariya Fields:
- Major supporting fields in the Barmer basin
- Significant contribution to India’s crude output

Other Fields:

Saraswati, Raageshwari, Kameshwari, Shakti, etc.
Total ~38 discovered oil fields in the basin

Natural Gas Fields

Raageshwari Deep Gas (RDG):
- Major gas-producing field
- Supplies gas for power generation and industry
Jaisalmer Gas Fields:
- Production from Tanot-Dandewala and Shahgarh areas
- Estimated reserves ~10.8 BCM natural gas

Production Techniques

Conventional Extraction: Standard drilling and pumping in major fields
Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR):
- Techniques: like Cyclic Steam Stimulation (CSS) used for heavy oil. It improves recovery from mature fields like Baghewala
Artificial Lift Systems: Use of Sucker Rod Pumps (SRP) to extract oil from wells.