Page 10 - AsiaElec Week 24 2022

AsiaElec FUELS AsiaElec

India registers 24% rise in y/y

fuel demand in May, Russian

imports aiding Moscow

INDIA DATA released by India’s Petroleum Planning Meanwhile, Indian media reported this week
and Analysis Cell shows that the country’s year- that Russia is now the second-largest oil supplier
on-year consumption of petroleum products to India. Refiners in the country are reported to
jumped to 18.27mn tonnes in May this year, an be purchasing Russian oil at a 30% discount to
increase of 23.8% on May 2021, when demand international prices. New Delhi has not backed
was put at 14.76mn tonnes. any sanctions imposed on Moscow by the Euro-
The increase was attributed to the fact that pean Union or the US.
demand for fuels and products was reduced India, the world’s third-largest importer of
in May 2021 due to restrictions put in place to oil, is estimated to be buying 18% of Russia’s
address the coronavirus (COVID-19) pan- exported oil, compared to 1% before the start of
demic, during which peoples’ movements were the Ukraine war.
restricted. According to Bloomberg, India and China
Diesel consumption during May this year are now purchasing 50% of Russia oil exports
totalled 7.29mn tonnes, against 5.53mn tonnes and in doing so are seen as propping up Russia’s
in May 2021, and gasoline increased to 3.02mn war efforts in Ukraine. However, some of India’s
tonnes in May 2022 from 1.99mn tonnes a year refined products are usually re-exported to US
ago. and European markets.
Current high oil prices are expected to curtail Purchases of crude by India and China have
demand in the weeks and months ahead. India enabled Russia to boost oil output by 5% so far
has taken steps to get around high prices by pur- during June, according to reports by Reuters and
chasing Russia crude oil at a discount since the Interfax. Seaborne exports are also up by 9.5%.
start of the Ukraine war, which has led many of Russian output averaged 1.46mn tonnes per day
Russia’s normal Western crude customers to stop during the first 13 days of June, the news agen-
buying Russian oil in an attempt to force Mos- cies said, an increase of some 68,000 barrels per
cow to remove its troops from Ukraine. day (bpd).™
Like elsewhere, India is struggling to keep
inflation under control.

P10 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 24 15•June•2022