Indian refiners’ crude throughput in November was the highest since February 2020, government data showed on Tuesday, as hopes of a steady uptick in demand at the world’s third-biggest oil consumer prompted refiners to operate at full capacity.
Refiners processed 5.25 million barrels per day (21.48 million tonnes) last month, up 5.9 per cent from 4.96 million bpd in October, the data showed. On a year-on-year basis, throughput rose about 3.4 per cent.
“Refiners normally look at demand potential in the next few months and they still appear to be very optimistic about India’s oil demand despite a recent dip,” said Refinitiv analyst Ehsan Ul Haq.
They operated at an average rate of 104.61 per cent of capacity in November, up from 98.76 per cent in October, the data further showed.
