How should we view China National Chemical Engineering Group’s winning of the bids for the gasification & purification and ammonia/urea synthesis packages at India’s world-largest coal-to-fertilizer plant, with a contract value of approximately RMB 8 billion?

This claim carries strong emotional overtones—but upon careful verification, it proves to be significantly inconsistent with the facts. This article reconstructs the true situation of the project based on official Indian disclosures, reports from mainstream media, and information released by the project company. --- I. The project has not been abandoned—but it *has* suffered severe delays. The project in question is the Talcher Coal-to-Fertilizer Project in India, implemented by Talcher Fertilizers Limited (TFL), a joint venture owned by Indian state-owned enterprises; Chinese enterprises serve as the EPC general contractors. According to information disclosed by the Indian government in Parliament: - As of February 2026, overall project completion stands at 71.24%. - Original scheduled commissioning date: 2023. - Revised estimated commissioning date: December 2027. Meanwhile, *The Times of India* reported: > "The project has been delayed by over four years due to technical, regulatory, and logistical challenges." This means: > The project has *not* been abandoned—it is a severely delayed yet actively ongoing construction project. --- II. Construction remains continuous—there has been no suspension. Information published on the project company’s official website confirms: - Critical units—including gasification, air separation, and ammonia synthesis—are still under construction. - A large number of core equipment items have already arrived on-site and are being installed. Moreover, credit rating agency ICRA explicitly stated in its report: > "The project previously encountered a 'standoff', but this has since been resolved through multiple rounds of coordination; construction has resumed, and subcontractor payments remain normal." This point is crucial: > The project is *not* “shut down and abandoned”—rather, after resolving disputes, work has resumed and continues to advance. --- III. The claim that “India has not made payments” is unfounded. This is the most misleading assertion circulating online. 1) Funding continues to flow into the project. According to *The Economic Times*: - Coal India Ltd. continues to inject additional investment into the project. - In 2025 alone, new investment amounted to approximately ₹106.7 billion (about USD 1.3 billion). In addition, the project’s financing structure shows: - Total investment is approximately ₹1.3 trillion (over RMB 13 billion), funded through a combination of equity and bank loans—providing sustained financial support. This indicates: > There is *no* funding shortfall or non-payment by India. 2) With over 70% of construction completed, substantial progress payments must have already been disbursed.

Inside the world’s largest bribery scandal in the oil industry

After a six-month investigation spanning two continents, Fairfax Media and the Huffington Post revealed that certain individuals helped major global corporations—including Britain’s Rolls-Royce, U.S. oilfield services giant Halliburton, Australia’s Leighton Holdings, and South Korea’s Samsung and Hyundai—to bribe officials, thereby securing government contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars. As their investigation deepened, reporters from Fairfax Media and the Huffington Post gradually focused on Unaoil—a company headquartered in Morocco and operated by the wealthy Ahsani family. By tracking an encrypted advertisement published in a French newspaper, a series of secret meetings, and late-night phone calls, the journalists ultimately obtained thousands of confidential emails and documents leaked by members of the Ahsani family. According to these documents, Unaoil maintained exceptionally close ties with royal families, openly dismissed anti-corruption agencies, and secretly cultivated an extensive network of influential contacts across the world’s oil-producing nations. The oil industry ranks among the world’s wealthiest sectors—and fluctuations within it inevitably affect people’s lives to some degree. In the world’s poorest countries, corruption in the oil sector exacerbates social inequality and instability: citizens’ most basic incomes are siphoned off, wealth gaps widen relentlessly—and such corruption thus became one of the catalysts behind the Arab Spring (referring to the wave of uprisings, social protests, and armed rebellions that swept numerous Arab countries in spring 2011). Fairfax Media and the Huffington Post exposed Unaoil’s behind-the-scenes role between 2002 and 2012 in helping Western corporations infiltrate the Middle Eastern oil industry. The leaked documents implicated two Iraqi Oil Ministers, a broker connected to Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi regime, and senior Saudi officials—and a Kuwaiti figure known only as “The Big Man.” [Zhihu: Dr. Oil] Fairfax Media and the Huffington Post exposed Unaoil’s behind-the-scenes role between 2002 and 2012 in helping Western corporations infiltrate the Middle Eastern oil industry. The leaked documents implicated two Iraqi Oil Ministers, a broker connected to Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi regime, and senior Saudi officials—and a Kuwaiti figure known only as “The Big Man.” Unaoil’s Middle East operations involved a wide array of the world’s wealthiest Western companies—including Britain’s Rolls-Royce and Petrofac, U.S. firms FMC Technologies, Cameron, and Weatherford, Italy’s energy giant Eni and oilfield contractor Saipem, Germany’s MAN Diesel & Turbo and Siemens, the Netherlands’ SBM Offshore, India’s Larsen & Toubro, and the overseas subsidiary of Australia’s Leighton Holdings. All were found to be deeply entangled in serious corruption. Leaked documents reveal that, within these companies, some personnel genuinely believed they had hired legitimate brokers—while others, aware of—or at least suspicious about—the truth (i.e., that they were effectively funding bribery)—simply chose to turn a blind eye.

Rashtriya Chemicals Awards $83M Ammonia Plant Revamp Contract to L&T

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Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers Ltd. awarded Larsen & Toubro a $83 million contract to revamp its ammonia plant in Thal. The project targets reduced energy consumption and will be completed within 36 months.

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