BPCL to offer upto 1,500 beds in make-shift COVID centre set up at Kochi Refinery premises

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) will provide free oxygen, power and water to a make-shift COVID treatment centre at its Kochi Refinery, from today. Initially, it will provide 100 beds but in the second phase, this centre will have 1,500 beds, in the same premises.

The company plans to supply oxygen through a dedicated stainless steel pipeline. To reach out in far-flung areas, the refinery has already ordered a new bottling compressor for undisrupted oxygen refills. Once commissioned, the facility is expected to fill 600 -700 oxygen cylinders per day.

BPCL has been upgrading its facilities at Mumbai and Bina Refineries for supply of 600 MT free gaseous oxygen per month to government hospitals and medical centres. This is besides BPCL supplying 100 MT liquid oxygen from Kochi Refinery every month.

BPCL is also setting up PSA oxygen plants in two government hospitals in Maharashtra, three hospitals in Kerala and five hospitals in Madhya Pradesh.

Commenting on the occasion, Sanjay Khanna, Executive Director (Kochi Refinery), Bharat Petroleum said, “Bharat Petroleum has always been at the forefront to reach out to society, during such times.” He added, “Upgrading our oxygen production facility, at a short notice, was a challenge but we could complete the entire activity within five days.”