Due to a surge in the global oil prices, the demand for oil is decreasing in the world’s third largest economy amid the Covid-19 outbreak. Therefore, many refiners in the country are struggling to operate their business.
R. Ramachandran, head of refineries, told the media, “Current low demand due to Covid-19 along with higher inventory has given us an opportunity to carry out turn around and be ready to meet higher demand in the coming festival season.”
It is reported that the struggling oil refiners are halting their crude processing and shutting units for maintenance. In India, everything was fine until May but now the oil refiners are facing a grim situation in their own backyard.
According to officials, currently three refineries of Bharat Petroleum are being operated at a capacity of 70 percent as compared to 90 percent in the first week of June. It is expected that in August the crude processing will be less because the country’s premium refiners such as Reliance Industries (RELI.NS), Indian Oil Corp (IOC.NS) and BPCL are shutting units for maintenance during the volatile period.
The current situation in the country has compelled the refineries to conduct maintenance during the monsoon. In June, the crude oil production for Indian refiners fell at an annual rate of 13.6 percent in June as compared to a 29 percent downfall in April. In addition, China managed to increase their crude oil production by 9 percent in June.