In a boost to Essar group, the Supreme Court on Monday allowed it to go ahead with its Rs 10,000 crore (Rs 100 billion) oil refinery project at Jamnagar in Gujarat, hanging fire for almost a decade due to controversy over its pipelines passing through a marine national park and sanctuary at Vadinar.

A bench comprising Justice Ruma Pal and Justice B N Srikrishna, while allowing an appeal filed by Essar Oil Limited, said the company was "entitled to proceed with the project."

The bench directed the Gujarat government "to provide within a fortnight" all permission required for the purpose of laying the pipeline in the marine national park and sanctuary for carrying crude oil to the refinery.

Essar, which has already invested Rs 5,300 crore (Rs 53 billion) in the refinery project and completed 64 per cent of the project, had moved the Supreme Court challenging the Gujarat high court decision on a PIL stalling permission for laying of pipelines through the national park and sanctuary at Vadinar.

EOL had said Bharat Oman Refineries Ltd, Reliance Petrochemicals Ltd and Indian Oil Corporation have already been allowed to lay pipeline and marine facilities in the marine national park and sanctuary areas and hence the same facility should be extended to it.

Essar Oil showed to the court the clearances it had got from almost all authorities before going ahead with the project. It also had brought to the notice of the court the report of experts saying the scientific laying of pipelines would cause little harm to the marine wildlife.