Demand for fuel surges in May as economy opens up
NEW DELHI : Demand for petroleum products doubled in May from the previous month, the country’s largest refiner Indian Oil Corp. Ltd (IOC) said, as India’s economic engines whirred back to life with the easing of lockdown restrictions. Capacity utilization, which had shrunk to 39% at the beginning of the coronavirus lockdown, has since rebounded to 83%, the refiner said on Wednesday.
“The crude oil throughput of Indian Oil refineries crossed 80% as on date, with consumption of all petroleum products put together almost doubling in May as compared to April levels,” IOC said in a statement. India’s power and overall energy demand, which had nosedived, is also slowly returning to pre-lockdown levels, Mint reported. Energy consumption, especially electricity and refinery products, is typically linked to overall demand in an economy.
“The corporation has been able to gradually raise the throughput of its refineries from about 55% of rated capacity in the beginning of May to about 78% by month-end, and 83% as on date.
