India’s fuel supply situation may face some pressure in the coming weeks. Nayara Energy, India’s second-largest single- site refinery, is set to shut its Vadinar refinery in Gujarat for maintenance starting April 9, a move that could impact the availability of some fuels, especially LPG, reported Reuters.
The Vadinar refinery, which has a capacity of 400,000 barrels per day, is expected to remain shut for around 35 days. According to reports, this could temporarily take nearly 8% of India’s total refining capacity offline.
The maintenance was originally planned for last year but had to be delayed. European Union sanctions had made it difficult for the company to arrange key equipment needed for the work.
The timing of this shutdown is important. Ongoing tensions in the Middle East, including the US-Iran conflict, have already tightened the availability of oil and gas globally. This has put pressure on imports of crude oil, natural gas and LPG into India.
With one major refinery going offline, concerns around domestic fuel supply, especially cooking gas, could increase in the short term.
To manage local demand, some Indian refiners have decided to postpone their own maintenance plans.
Companies like Indian Oil Corporation and Bharat Petroleum had earlier scheduled routine shutdowns at certain units but have held back for now, said Sujata Sharma, joint secretary in the federal oil ministry.