India is set to dominate the new build and expansion refinery projects in Asia, accounting for 45 per cent of the upcoming crude oil refinery projects starts in the region between 2023 and 2027, fuelled by rising demand for petroleum products, according to GlobalData.
GlobalData’s Crude Oil Refinery Projects Analysis and Forecast by Region, Key Countries, Project Type (New Build and Expansion), Development Stage, and Cost 2027 report reveals that out of the 81 refinery projects to commence operations in India during the period, two are expected to be new build projects and the rest are expansions of existing projects.
In India, 35 upcoming refinery projects are in the construction stage and are likely to start operations between 2023 and 2027. While another 32 projects are in the approval stage, 11 projects are in the commissioning phase.
Bhargavi Gandham, Oil & Gas Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “India, being one of the leading consumers of petroleum products, is expanding its refining capacity to effectively meet the growing demand.
“The consumption of petroleum products in the country grew annually by about 10 per cent for the financial year ending March 2023. The surge in demand for petroleum products was driven by rapid industrialisation, infrastructure development, increased vehicle sales, and economic expansion.”
The major expansion projects that are expected to start operations in India by 2027 are the Vadinar CDU Expansion, Panipat CDU Expansion, and Paradip CDU Expansion.
The Vadinar CDU Expansion has a capacity of 515 thousand barrels per day (mbd) and is expected to become operational in 2024. Nayara Energy Ltd is the operator of the project, while Rosneft Oil Co and Kesani Enterprises Co Ltd hold 49.13% of equity each.
The Paradip CDU Expansion and the Panipat CDU Expansion project stand second with a CDU capacity of 200 mbd each. Indian Oil Corp Ltd is the operator and 100% equity holder of both projects.