Demand up, oil firms import petrolWith the pandemic and lack of demand during lockdown, oil refiners have been operating plants below capacity, but now petrol sales are back at pre-virus levels as more people use personal vehicles to avoid the risk of getting infected on public transport.
But, with fewer trucks and buses on the road and industrial demand yet to pick up, diesel use is still 8% lower than pre-covid times, so refiners are hesitant to raise production.
They now plan to import petrol to cover demand while continuing to run plants below capacity. Bharat Petroleum plans to import fuel every month until there’s enough diesel demand to support running its refineries at higher capacity, the company said.