A Reliance spokesman said: "It is not the company's policy to comment on speculation." On the face of it, the proposal seems workable as it would only require products of the refinery to be carried via tankers coming from the middle east to the closest port in Bangladesh. This would be an easier option than considering road or rail transport to the nearest point in West Bengal and thereon to Bangladesh.

Incidentally, the promoters of the three million tonne Numaligarh refinery, Bharat Petroleum Corporation and IBP, are already in talks with the Bangladesh government on evacuating 50 per cent of the output to the country. The products, which include high speed diesel and superior kerosene oil, are expected to be transported via barges to Bangla-desh.

If everything goes according to plan, the first despatch from Numaligarh could reach Bangladesh early next year. Sources say RPL could work on a schedule beginning end-2000 when demand in the local market is first met.Rough estimates have already indicated that the country could be surplus in some products over the next two years. While private refiners have already started working on their export plans, the public sector oil companies are still awaiting clear directives from the government on this front.

RPL has already entered into a marketing pact with Indian Oil Corporation to lift 50 per cent of the output from its refinery. The balance will be accounted for equally by Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and BPCL. As per the Nirmal Singh committee report on deregulation of the oil sector, a company keen to market products on its own needs to invest Rs 2,000 crore in a refinery.

While RPL clearly qualifies, it does not have the required infrastructure for such an effort and will need the support of the three oil PSUs for the present. Sources say the company has begun the process of identifying sites for its own dealerships post 2002. The company has already indicated that it is open to the idea of buying out the franchisees of BPCL and HPCL as also IBP.

Company charts production schedule
RPL has drawn up the production schedule of products from its refinery for the period between November and March 2000. In November, the company will supply to the oil marketing PSUs 65,000 tonnes of motor spirit), going up to 1.7 lakh tonnes in December, 2.2 lakh tonnes in January, down to 1.6 lakh tonnes in February and rising again to 2.5 lakh tonnes in March.

The corresponding figures for high speed diesel are 8.5 lakh tonnes, 8 lakh tonnes, 8.5 lakh tonnes, 6.5 lakh tonnes and finally 8 lakh tonnes in March. The quantities of motor spirit (MS) and aviation turbine fuel are 65,000 tonnes and 3,000 tonnes in November, 1.7 lakh tonnes and 12,000 tonnes in December, 2.2 lakh tonnes and 22,000 tonnes in January, 1.6 lakh tonnes and 2,000 tonnes in February and 2.5 lakh tonnes and 18,000 tonnes in March.