India’s state-owned refiners will add at least 15 million tonnes per year (mtpa) of diesel production capacity, potentially boosting exports to fuel-short markets from the US to Europe as new facilities come online next year, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on October 27, according to Bloomberg’s Asharq Business website.
Puri said India’s total refining capacity was expected to rise to 300 million tonnes per year from about 267 million tonnes currently, before reaching 400 million tonnes within the next few years.
Arvinder Singh Sahney, chairman of Indian Oil Corp (IOC), India’s largest refiner, said the company expected to increase annual diesel output by up to 9 million tonnes from next year, following expansions that will add more than 17 mtpa to crude processing capacity across three refineries.
Vikas Kaushal, chairman of Hindustan Petroleum Corp (HPCL), said the company would add about 4 million tonnes to its diesel output as its new 9 mtpa refinery in Rajasthan reaches full capacity.
Numaligarh Refinery, a subsidiary of Oil India, will increase its fuel output to about 3 million tonnes, while Bharat Petroleum Corp (BPCL) expects to add 1.5 million tonnes from 2028, according to its chairman, Sanjay Khanna.
Indian refiners produced 59 million tonnes of diesel in the first half of the fiscal year that began in April, while domestic consumption stood at about 46 million tonnes, according to Oil Ministry data.
