Local lockdowns, low industrial activity push July fuel consumption down

The recovery of diesel and petrol consumption in India to pre-Covid levels slowed in July on the back of lower demand due to state-level lockdowns, low industrial activity and reduced movement of private vehicles, according to a report by the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC).

The consumption of diesel fell 19.3 per cent to 5.5 million metric tonnes (MMT), as against 6.8 MMT in July 2019 and down 12.7 per cent from June 2020, signalling a slowdown in the recovery of diesel consumption to pre-Covid levels. The recovery of petrol consumption too slowed in July with consumption of around 2.3 MMT, the same as in June but down 10.3 per cent from consumption of 2.5 MMT in July 2019.

The consumption of diesel hit a low of 3.3 MMT and that of petrol fell below 1 MMT this April, as a result of the lockdown to curb the spread of Covid-19.