During the shutdown, the company will carry out modifications at various units to raise capacity of the plant to 156,000 bpd, R. Ramachandran told Reuters.

"The refinery will be stable and start operating at (an annual rate of) 7.8 million tonnes (156,000 bpd) before the end of this calendar year," Ramachandran said.

The expansion is also aimed at producing cleaner fuels.

The Bina refinery is operated by Bharat Oman Refineries Ltd (BORL), a 50-50 joint venture between Oman Oil Co and state-run Bharat Petroleum Corp.