History

MRPL was promoted in 1988 as a joint sector undertaking between HPCL (a public sector company) and IRIL & Associates (A.V. Birla Group) as a private partner, with an initial crude processing capacity of 3.0 MMTPA. Following financial difficulties, ONGC acquired the A.V. Birla Group's stake on 28 March 2003, injecting ₹600 crore of equity and converting MRPL into a majority public sector undertaking. ONGC subsequently drove successive capacity expansions — Phase II to 9.69 MMTPA, and Phase III to the current 15.0 MMTPA — transforming a modest coastal refinery into one of India's largest refining companies. The Government of India conferred Miniratna (Category I) status on MRPL in 2007, recognising its operational and financial performance.

Business Activities

MRPL operates through a single primary business segment — Petroleum Products — encompassing:

• Refining — crude oil processing at its 15 MMTPA refinery at Katipalla, north of Mangaluru
• Petrochemicals — polypropylene and aromatic compounds production
• Retail — fuel service stations under the 'HiQ' brand; 101 outlets across Karnataka and Kerala as of FY2024; retail sales of 2.6 MMT in FY2024
• Aviation Fuel — trading and supply via a joint venture
• Exports — diesel, petrol, ATF, and aromatic compounds to markets in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, facilitated by MRPL's two captive jetties at New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT) and a Single Point Mooring (SPM) facility

Financial Scale

Group Companies

MRPL's principal associated entity is ONGC Mangalore Petrochemicals Limited (OMPL) — an aromatics complex (PX/PTA) established on an adjacent site, founded in December 2006, in which both ONGC and MRPL hold stakes. OMPL produces paraxylene and other aromatic products, providing downstream integration to MRPL's naphtha and reformate streams.

Key Distinctions

• The only refinery in India with two hydrocrackers producing premium diesel
• One of only two refineries in India with two CCR units producing high-octane unleaded petrol
• Designed to process crudes across a wide range of 24–46° API gravity
• Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) environmental compliance
• Captive infrastructure at New Mangalore Port — two jetties + SPM buoy — giving direct VLCC access for crude imports and product exports

References

1. Wikipedia — Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (Accessed Mar 28, 2026)
2. Screener.in — Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd — Company Profile (Accessed Mar 28, 2026)
3. Sovrenn — Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd Company Profile, Products, Promoters and Clients (Nov 21, 2024)
4. LinkedIn — Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd — Company Page (Accessed Mar 28, 2026)
5. Financial Times Markets — Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd — Company Profile (Accessed Mar 28, 2026)
6. MarketsMojo — MRPL — Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd (Accessed Mar 28, 2026)
7. MarketScreener — Company Profile: Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (Accessed Mar 28, 2026)