MUMBAI: Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) had started exporting diesel in the July-September quarter, an unusual occurrence for public sector refining and marketing firm.
BPCL said export of diesel continues in the current quarter as well, and it is trying to get term commitments so that it is able to get better price for exports. As diesel demand hit a negative 2.5 per cent in Q2, public sector refiners are for the first time looking at exports to keep their refinery throughput intact.
BPCL is looking at export of 3-4 four parcels or around 200 to 300 TMT of diesel every month, mainly from Kochi, said N Vijayagopal, director (finance), BPCL. “It is better to run refinery at full capacity and export rather than cutting refinery throughput,” he said. The Indian refineries have been running at full capacity for several years as demand for transportation fuel kept expanding.
