Indian refiners set for surge in exports

Crippled refineries in Russia and the advancing winter in Europe are expected to pump up demand for Indian petro-products till the end of March.

- Rituraj Baruah

The Indian refineries may be in prime position to tap the demand, given that they have expanded their crude oil sourcing over the years, and completed scheduled annual maintenance.

Ukraine has rained missiles and drones on Russian energy assets to disrupt Moscow's war funding, hurting about 30% of its refining capacity, and prompting buyers to turn to refiners in India. Meanwhile, colder weather in Europe is expected to increase energy demand for heating.

September witnessed India's highest export of petroleum products so far in FY26 at 6.18 million tonne, data from Petroleum Planning & Analysis Cell showed. Diesel exports to Europe hit a 19-month high of 291,000 barrels per day in September according to global real-time data and analytics provider Kpler, the highest since December 2023, and this robust demand is expected to continue in months ahead.

"These (Russian) refineries would require a few months to completely revive operations, which would mean demand via imports may sustain. Export demand till the next quarter seems strong," said Prashant Vasisht, senior vicepresident and co-group head of corporate ratings at Icra Ltd. Demand from Russia is also expected to go up, he said.