Oil India Limited (OIL) on Tuesday that acquiring the shares of  Numaligarh Refinery Ltd (NRL) will contribute to the mutual growth of the companies and ensure energy security of the nation.

Addressing a press conference in Guwahati today, OIL CMD and NRL Chairman Sushil Chandra Mishra said that the acquisition of shares of NRL is one of the most defining moments for an exploration and production company. OIL has bought a 54.16 per cent stake in the refinery. The value of its stakeholding in the company has now touched 80.16 per cent.

Earlier last month, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd has sold its 61.5 per cent stake in NRL to OIL, Engineers India and the Assam government for Rs 9,876 crore.

Mishra also emphasized that the collaboration will help both companies to consolidate their business plans and to a large extent reduce the inconsistency in the crude price cycle due to diverse cash flows and instead enhance the shareholders value.

Mishra asserted that the synergy of the two companies will lead to major developments in the new hydrocarbon blocks in the Northeast and will help in achieving targets set by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas under North East Hydrocarbon Vision 2030.

OIL is currently operating the Naharkatiya-Barauni crude pipeline as well as Numaligarh-Siliguri Product Pipeline and it produces around 7-8 million metric standard cubic meters per day (MMSCMD) of natural gas (NG) in the North East region and supplies one MMSCMD of it to NRL.

Meanwhile, NRL Managing Director S K Barua, the refinery's crude pipeline of 1,630 km in length is being expanded to Odisha, West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Bihar.

NRL is already partnering with OIL, wherein OIL is the operator in two oil blocks (Namrup and West Mechaki) and has earmarked an investment of around Rs 90 crore there, Barua said.