IOC expects 100% refinery run within a quarter as fuel demand returns

Indian Oil Corp (IOC), the nation's largest oil firm, expects refinery run to reach 100 per cent within a quarter as fuel demand returns, its chairman SM Vaidya said.

Speaking at India Energy Forum by CERAWeek, he said petrol and cooking gas LPG demand is already above pe-COVID levels and diesel - the most consumed fuel in the country - is inching back to normalcy.

"Energy demand is rebounding in India with the revival of economic activity" after a devastating pandemic, he said.

India's energy demand had halved after a nationwide lockdown was imposed in late March last year. But with gradual easing of restrictions, economic activity has rebounded.

Vaidya said the robust energy demand in India is only set to grow in the future.

"LPG and petrol have already exceeded pre COVID levels, and we expect refinery capacity to reach 100 per cent by the next quarter," he said.

IOC's refineries operated at 82 per cent of capacity in September and are above 90 per cent this month.

He said IOC is strengthening its core business of refining and is looking to enhance its refining capacity to 105 million tonnes per annum from current 80.5 million tonne at the cost of USD 13.5 billion.

"Oil will continue to be lead fuel for next two decades," he said. "The country needs all forms of energy, and as a responsible corporate, IndianOil is strengthening its core business while expanding into the green energy domain. "

Vaidya mentioned about the encouraging results of hydrogen spiked CNG, which is being used to run a fleet of 50 buses of the Rajghat Depot in Delhi.

"Hydrogen spiked CNG allows us to transition to a Hydrogen economy smoothly and scale up in the future to make it cost-competitive," he said highlighting the immense benefits of H-CNG in terms of emission control.

Vaidya also talked about the intensive focus on ethanol blending and the production of ethanol-blended petrol from Mathura and Panipat refineries of IOC.

"Ethanol blending at refinery stage allows us to produce higher octane petrol and provide a better-quality product to our customers," he said.

Speaking about the ongoing energy transition in which IOC is playing a leading role, he said We are upskilling and reskilling our workforce to make them future-fit and future-ready."

IOC during the COVID-19 pandemic refilled 33 lakh LPG cylinders at its peak in April 2020 which is a record for the company, he added.