By THE NEWSMAN OF INDIA.COM|Engineers India Limited (EIL) has etched its name in global engineering history by successfully completing the world’s longest Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) crossing for a 26-inch pipeline, stretching an unprecedented 4,058 metres beneath the mighty Brahmaputra. Achieved under the strategically vital Paradip–Numaligarh Crude Oil Pipeline (PNCPL) project, this feat marks a defining moment for India’s engineering and energy infrastructure capabilities.

The milestone is even more remarkable as it surpasses EIL’s own earlier global record of 4,027 metres achieved at the Ganga crossing, also under the PNCPL project. Together, these accomplishments underscore EIL’s ability to push technological boundaries and deliver complex infrastructure in some of the most challenging geological and environmental conditions in the world.

The 1,635-km-long PNCPL is a project of national importance, designed to transport imported crude oil from Paradip Port in Odisha to Numaligarh Refinery in Assam. Traversing five states—Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, and the Northeast—the pipeline is a strategic energy corridor that will significantly strengthen India’s energy security, support refinery expansion, and catalyse economic development across multiple regions.

Executing an HDD crossing of this magnitude beneath the Brahmaputra required exceptional planning, advanced engineering design, precision execution, and seamless coordination among multiple stakeholders. The success reflects EIL’s deep domain expertise, robust project management systems, and its ability to innovate under extreme technical constraints. Supported by the Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL) team and committed executing partners, EIL has once again demonstrated why it is regarded as one of India’s foremost engineering consultancies.

Beyond records and numbers, the achievement carries wider significance. It symbolises India’s growing self-reliance in executing mega infrastructure projects and reinforces the role of public sector engineering institutions in nation-building, particularly in accelerating development in the Northeast.

EIL to Drive Expansion of Africa’s Largest Refinery at Dangote, Nigeria

While setting records at home, Engineers India Limited is simultaneously strengthening its global footprint by partnering once again with Nigeria’s Dangote Group for a landmark expansion of Africa’s largest refinery and petrochemical complex. In a strong endorsement of EIL’s engineering and project management capabilities, Dangote has awarded EIL a contract valued at over US $350 million to act as Project Management Consultant (PMC) and EPCM Consultant for the next phase of expansion.

The Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Complex at the Lekki Free Zone, commissioned in 2024, is already the world’s largest single-train refinery with a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day. Designed and executed with EIL as a key partner, the complex has transformed Africa’s energy landscape by producing Euro-V quality fuels and significantly reducing the continent’s dependence on imported petroleum products.

Building on this success, Dangote now plans a massive expansion, increasing refining capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day (Train 2) with production of Euro-VI grade fuels. The project also includes a major scale-up of petrochemical operations—expanding polypropylene capacity from 830 KTPA to 2.4 MMTPA through revamping existing units, installing a new 1.2 MMTPA PPU, and adding a world-scale 750 KTPA UOP Oleflex unit to strengthen propylene feedstock.

Once completed, the expanded complex will position Dangote as the world’s largest petroleum refinery at a single location, elevating Nigeria as a regional hub for refined fuels and petrochemicals. For EIL, the project represents a milestone in its global journey, showcasing Indian engineering excellence on one of the largest and most complex energy projects worldwide.

The renewed partnership reflects deep trust in EIL’s multidisciplinary strengths and its ability to manage projects of exceptional scale and complexity across the entire lifecycle—from concept to commissioning. As Africa’s energy ambitions grow, EIL’s role in shaping world-class infrastructure stands as a testament to India’s rising stature as a global engineering powerhouse.