America's dirty secret: India becomes the gasoline gusher

Subcontinent to fill the petrol production gap in the United States and Europe

Randeep Ramesh in Jamnagar, Gujarat
Wednesday October 11, 2006
The Guardian

Sitting on the edge of the water in the Gulf of Kutch on India's western shore is one of America's dirty secrets. A mass of steel pipes and concrete boxes stretches across 13 square miles (33sq km) - a third of the area of Manhattan - which will eventually become the world's largest petrochemical refinery.

The products from the Jamnagar complex are for foreign consumption. When complete, the facility will be able to refine 1.24m barrels of crude a day. Two-fifths of this gasoline will be sent 9,000 miles (15,000km) by sea to America.