印度燃料需求五月复苏

据能源世界网5月18日新德里报道，印度燃料需求在4月份以创纪录速度下降，随后放松了对燃料供应的封锁，允许更多车辆上路行驶，并增加了工厂活动之后，5月份正迅速复苏。

据业内高管表示，5月份前两周，国有石油公司的柴油和汽油销量同比分别下降了28%和47.5%。这与4月份相比有明显改善，当时柴油和汽油的销量分别下降了56.5%和61%。国有企业控制着近90%的国内燃料销售。

全国范围内的封锁逐步放松，许多工厂恢复了生产，更多的货车和客车上路，推动了对燃料的需求。与为遏制疫情蔓延而实施的全国封锁的第一个和最严格阶段相重叠的4月上半月，见证了燃料需求急剧下降，柴油和汽油销售额较一年前分别下降61%和64%。

高管们表示，预计封锁限制的进一步放松可能会在5月的下半月提振燃料需求。

然而，由于客机仍被禁止飞行，航空燃油的销售几乎没有恢复。5月份前两周，航空燃油销量同比下降87%。4月份，下降了91.5%。

高管们称，在该国主要用于烹饪的液化石油气（LPG）的销量在5月的上半月比去年同期增长了24％，从而进一步提高了过去多个月的强劲增长速度。今年4月上半月的液化石油气销售量增加了21%，但整个月的销售量仅下降到12%，由于预计5月初烹饪用天然气价格将大幅下降，经销商在月底交货速度放慢。

燃料需求的增加让炼油厂如释重负，炼油厂目前都在提高运转率。印度石油公司(Indian Oil Corp)表示，其炼油厂已将产能利用率从上月的45%提高至60%，并计划在5月底前进一步提高至80%。需求崩溃和库存过剩迫使所有炼油商削减产能利用率。没有一家炼油厂被关闭，尽管有几家非常接近。

郝芬 译自 能源世界网

原文如下：

India's fuel demand recovers in May

India’s fuel demand is recovering fast in May after falling at a record pace in April following the easing of lockdown that has permitted more vehicles on the roads and increased factory activity.

The diesel and petrol sales by state oil companies have fallen by 28 per cent and 47.5 per cent, respectively, in the first fortnight of May from a year earlier, according to industry executives. This is a sharp improvement from April, when the sale of diesel and petrol had declined by 56.5 per cent and 61 per cent, respectively. State companies control nearly 90 per cent of domestic fuel sales.

A staggered easing of nationwide lockdown has got many factories humming back to life and more goods trucks and passenger cars on the roads, driving up demand for fuel. The first fortnight of April, which overlapped with the first and the strictest phase of the nationwide lockdown imposed to stem the spread of coronavirus had witnessed the sharpest fall in fuel demand with diesel and petrol sales falling 61 per cent and 64 per cent, respectively, from a year earlier.

An expected further easing of the lockdown curbs may boost fuel demand in the second fortnight of May, executives said.

Jet fuel sales, however, are barely recovering as passenger planes are still barred from flying. Jet fuel sales fell 87 per cent in the first fortnight of May from a year earlier. In April, it had declined by 91.5 per cent.

The sales of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), used mainly for cooking in the country, has jumped 24 per cent in the first fortnight of May from a year earlier, further improving its scorching growth pace of the past many months. The LPG sales in the first half of April was 21 per cent higher though for the full month reduced to just 12 per cent mainly because dealers slowed taking delivery towards the end of the month in anticipation of a sharp reduction in cooking gas prices at the beginning of May, executives said.

Increased fuel demand has come as a big relief to refineries, which are now increasing their run rates. Indian Oil Corp said its refineries have raised capacity utilization to 60 per cent from 45 per cent last month and plan to raise it further to 80 per cent by end-May. A demand collapse and overflowing storage had forced all refiners to cut capacity utilization. None of the refineries was shut down though some came very close to it.