To take advantage of rising demand for diesel, Reliance Industries Ltd.’s Jamnagar refinery is suspending crude processing and deferring planned maintenance. The worldwide energy shortage caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is providing a much-needed boost to the world’s largest refining complex. It is already shipping the fuel to Europe, and this will rise in the coming months.
The complex can process 1.36 million barrels of crude a day from two refineries and is able to export most of the fuel. The 704,000 barrels a day export-focused plant only utilized around three-quarters of its capacity during the pandemic.
Reliance has a lot of leeway when it comes to crude feedstock ratios and yield shifts, and it exports 80% of its output. Some Asian refineries are considering exporting diesel as the price of the fuel rises in Europe as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Prices have soared to as much as $139 per tonne over those in Asia, compared to less than $10 for the most of previous year. Some processors, such as Reliance, are well-positioned to profit from the so-called arbitrage trade, but others are struggling to keep up with rising oil prices and are considering reducing their output.
