Page 5 - AsianOil Week 25a

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Meanwhile, TAPI has continued to dish to send Turkmen gas to Europe is seen as even
out contracts. In December last year, Italian less realistic.
consultant RINA was hired to supervise con- TAPI will continue, London-based PRISM
struction, while a Malaysian firm called Serba Politicial Risk Management says, “as long
Dinamik was picked to provide materials and as Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdy-
equipment in February, according to Turkmen mukhammedov remains in power, given his
state media. own personal political investment in the project.”
Just how much work has taken place on the But there is still no progress about resolv-
ground is hard to verify. ing TAPI’s greatest hurdle, security concerns in
Despite the considerable challenges that TAPI Afghanistan, despite the Turkmen government
faces, Turkmenistan shows no sign of giving up holding regular contact with the Afghan gov-
on the project. The country relies heavily on gas ernment and even with the Taliban, according
sales to China for its revenues, and TAPI is its to PRISM. TAPI remains a pipe dream, it seems,
answer to diversifying its revenue base. Another but one that Turkmenistan could continue
plan to build a pipeline under the Caspian Sea believing in for many years to come.™

India’s crude imports slump

to nine-year low in May

PERFORMANCE INDIA’S crude imports reportedly slumped to May, up from 53.2% in April.
a nearly nine-year low last month as refiners The country’s largest refiner has had a tough
slashed run rates in response to the months-long time this year, posting its first quarterly loss in
coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown. more than four years for the January-March
Imports shrank by 26% year on year in May to period on the back of steep inventory losses. IOC
3.18mn barrels per day (bpd), Reuters reported said this week that it had racked up a net loss of
on June 23, citing preliminary data from an INR51.85bn ($686mn) in the quarter compared
unnamed source. It was, the newswire said, the with a INR60.99bn ($806.9mn) profit in the
lowest volume since October 2011. same period of 2019.
Imports were down 31% from April, when IOC’s head of finance, Sandeep Kumar Gupta,
refineries began grappling with plummeting said the company had recorded INR146.92bn
domestic demand following the government’s ($1.94bn) in inventory losses in the quarter,
March 24 decision to implement nationwide compared with a INR26.55bn ($351.1mn) gain
social quarantine measures. in the same period of 2020.
Although runs reportedly bounced back to Based on the company’s run rates in April and
77% of capacity in May, owing to an easing of May, the current quarter also shaping up to be
lockdown restrictions, refinery operators still a difficult one for the company. It is not alone,
had a surplus of supply built up from the previ- however, with Rosneft-backed Nayara Energy
ous month. The country’s operating rates fell as and privately owned Reliance Industries Ltd
low as 30-40% in April, leading refiners to sell (RIL) also reducing run rates.
excess crude supply to the government’s strate- Nayara’s Vadinar refinery in Gujarat State ran
gic petroleum reserve (SPR) while also declaring at 91.9% of capacity in May and 85.3% in April,
force majeure on imports. while RIL’s Jamnagar complex in Gujarat ran at
Refineries processed 16.34mn tonnes 91.72% in May and 94.8% in April.
(3.86mn bpd) of crude in May, up 11% month on Depressed downstream demand for oil not
month but down 24% on the year, The Economic only saw imports tumble in May, but local pro-
Times reported on June 23, citing data from the duction also suffered. Crude output fell by 7%
Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. y/y in May to 2.6mn tonnes (615,000 bpd), while
State-owned Indian Oil Corp.’s (IOC) nine natural gas production shrank by 16% to 2.3bn
refineries operated at an average rate of 72.8% in cubic metres.™

Week 25 25•June•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P5