Crude oil import bill for 2001-02 likely to be around Rs 80,000 cr

New Delhi, April 11: INDIA’s crude oil import bill for 2001-02 is likely to be around Rs 80,000 crore, not much different from the previous year.

Pegging international crude oil price on an average at 25 dollars a barrel, petroleum ministry has estimated foreign exchange outgo of about 17 billion dollars during the current fiscal for import of over 75 million tonne of crude oil.

While the oil import bill rose sharply from Rs 54,000 crore in 1999-2000 to about Rs 80,000 crore in 2000-01, it is likely to remain mostly unchanged in the current fiscal on account of stability in international oil prices, official sources said. India’s crude oil import is likely to rise by a marginal 4 per cent to 78 million tonne in 2001-02 against about 75 million tonne of the previous financial year, sources said.

Public sector refining companies — Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) — are likely to import about 45 million tonne in 2001-02 while private sector Reliance Petroleum Ltd (RPL) was expected to import its nameplate capacity of 27 million tonne.

Aditya Birla-HPCL joint venture Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL) would account for the remaining, sources said. Domestic crude production is likely to remain stagnant at 33 million tonne in 2001-02, mostly unchanged from 2000-01, meeting around 30 per cent of the total crude oil requirement.

Steady demand in agriculture and industry is likely to push petroleum consumption in the country by 2-3 per cent to 108 million tonne during the current fiscal from an estimated 105 million tonne of 2000-01. Refineries are expected to operate at about 95 per cent of the total capacity of 112 million tonne during 2001-02, slightly higher than the previous year average of 92-93 per cent, sources said.

India would continue to generate surplus in gas oil, fuel oil and naphtha while its product imports would be limited to less than one million tonne of LPG mostly unchanged from the current year.

With consumer switching to imports which are cheaper, domestic refiners would have to tap the exports market for selling surpluses in gas oil, fuel oil and naphtha, sources said. (PTI)