The operations of the public sector Fertilizers and Chemicals Travancore and Bharat Petroleum Corporation’s Kochi refinery are back to near-normal after the 70-day-odd lockdown ended, with measures in place to fight the spread of COVID-19.

The production of the complex fertilizer Factamfos and ammonium sulphate has returned to normal at the two campuses of FACT, sources said. With the company expecting to cash in on the good spell of rain in the first phase of the monsoon, production now is in the normal range of 2,500 tonnes of Factamfos and 700 tonnes of ammonium sulphate daily.

Despite the lockdown, FACT has witnessed strong sales as farming activities have picked up momentum after the lockdown and with the onset of the rains. April and May saw Factamfos sales of 94,517 tonnes against 46,367 tonnes during the same months in the previous year.

Physical distancing norms are being followed in company strictly. There are random checks as well as frequent thermal checks for employees.

The BPCL-Kochi Refinery which had switched to a two-shift system during the lockdown, had re-introduced three shifts of eight-hour duration but care was being taken to keep physical distancing norms. Thermal checks, random tests on employees, use of sanitizers, and staggered canteen timings were all the new normal for the refinery employees, company sources said.

The refinery had operated with 280 employees in 12-hour shifts as the lockdown came into force. Production too had been cut as demand for various types of fuels had slumped in the wake of the lockdown. However, company sources said that the supply of cooking gas had not been affected.

Meanwhile, work on the two project sites at the BPCL-Kochi refinery has resumed. There is no shortage of workers, though a small number of workers had gone home immediately after the lockdown was lifted. The petrochemicals complex is undergoing work towards its commissioning while work on the motor spirit block is in the final stages of completion.

So far, there have been no instances of COVID-19 infection in the units.