Indian Oil Corp to boost naphtha output leading to ten fold increase in exports

16-Mar-05

Indian Oil Corp. (India's biggest oil refiner ) plans to boost naphtha output, leading to a 10-fold increase in exports of naphtha. Overseas shipments may surge from about 100,000 tons this year, to 1 million metric tons starting April 1, worth about $400 million at current prices. Naphtha is the fastest- growing refined product in Asia and demand outstrips growth in refining. India's growing surplus may provide weightage to buyers who source their feedstock from the Middle East- Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, which supply more than two-thirds of Asia's naphtha. Petrochemicals makers such as Malaysia's Titan Chemical Corp., paying the highest naphtha prices in more than 14 years because of increased demand, could be one of the company's to benefit.