SERVICING INDIA’S OIL BONANZA

Crude Projects Set to Surge

India is set to account for nearly half of upcoming crude oil refinery projects in Asia through to 2026 and project cargo movers are readying themselves for the boom.

In what could be seen as a counterintuitive projection against the backdrop of global efforts to reduce carbon emissions, some analysts see a significant level of growth for the refinery sector in India on the horizon.

A report issued by GlobalData, a data and analytics company, has India set to dominate Asian newbuild and expansion refinery projects between 2022 to 2026, as the country is expected to account for 47 percent of the upcoming crude oil refinery projects in the region, driven by economic growth and rising consumption of oil.

The report, ‘Crude Oil Refinery New-Build and Expansion Projects Analytics and Forecast by Project Type, Regions, Countries, Development Stage, and Cost 2022-2026’, reveals that 86 projects are expected to commence operations in India

Region: Asia during the period. Out of these, two projects will be newbuild while 84 represent expansions of existing projects.

In India, 45 upcoming refinery projects are in the approval stage and will likely start operations between 2022 and 2026. Construction and feasibility are the other major project stages with 21 and 19 projects, respectively.

Illustrating the potential for growth in the sector, Sudarshini Ennelli, an oil and gas analyst at

GlobalData, said: “India has emerged as one of the world’s largest consumers of both petrochemicals and petroleum products, and therefore continues to expand its refining capacity to meet this evergrowing demand.” As the sector is positioned for expansion, it follows that demand for related project cargo transportation services will see a sustained or enhanced level of demand.

Trans Global Projects Group’s Chairman Colin Charnock has a similar outlook to Ennelli’s, stretching beyond 2026. “India is set to dominate the Asian newbuild and expansion refinery projects in the coming years,” he told Breakbulk . “We anticipate this expansion will continue beyond the scope of 2026.”