India’s oil product exports plunged nearly 30% to six-year lows in June as refiners diverted diesel to the domestic market to meet surging summer demand, while growing preference for petrol-driven vehicles supported gasoline consumption and triggered unusually high imports of the fuel. The sharp drop in exports occurred despite record runs at state-run and private refiners. “India’s product exports fell despite record refinery runs due to strong domestic demand. Burgeoning gasoline demand has forced Indian refineries to import gasoline. We expect gasoline demand to remain strong and hence imports to continue,” said Amrita Sen, chief oil analyst at Energy Aspects. India has imported 488,000 mt of gasoline in the first half of 2015, compared with just 61,000 mt in the same period the previous year, data released recently by the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell showed. Article continues below… The Platts Global Energy Awards is a competitive awards program […]