New Delhi: State-owned oil firms have stock-piled 88 days' requirement of aviation
turbine fuel to meet any emergency in case of Iraq war.
Official sources said oil public sector units (PSUs) are maintaining 53 days of jet
fuel stock. Besides, the 23 days of crude oil inventory available would provide for
additional coverage of 34 days.
Stock of petrol and diesel are enough to meet country's requirement for 33 days,
while kerosene stocks are sufficient for 29 days. Besides, processing of the crude
oil stocks would provide for additional product coverage of 39 days for petrol, 30
days for diesel and 27 days for kerosene, they said.
Oil firms have resorted to heavy imports of domestic cooking gas (LPG) to take the
total inventory to 15 days by the end of this month from the current seven days.
Three days' LPG stocks are already in transit.
Sources said crude stockpile was enough to meet 12 days requirement of refineries,
while another 11 days requirement was in transit.
Advance contracts for sourcing crude oil from countries away from conflict zone have
already been made.
The Civil Aviation Ministry has prepared one of the biggest contingency plans in the
aviation history for evacuation of tens of thousands of Indian nationals from Gulf
states, in case a war breaks out in Iraq, the sources said.
Indian Airlines and Air India have been asked to keep aircraft ready to fly to
certain identified destinations around the probable war zone, they said.
While India imported 3.8 million tonnes of crude oil from Iraq in 2001-02 (2.718
million tonnes by Reliance Petroleum - RPL, 0.9 million tonnes by oil PSUs and
remaining by Mangalore Refineries and Petrochemicals Ltd - MRPL), the imports from
the crisis-hit country during the first six months of current fiscal were 2.646
million tonnes.
Unlike last year, bulk of imports from Iraq this year have been by oil PSUs (2.217
million tonnes), with RPL cutting its dependence on Iraq to just 429,000 tonnes in
April-October 2002, sources said.
Of the country's total crude oil imports of 78.706 million tonnes in 2001-02, 53.429
million tonnes came from the Middle East countries, the largest being from Saudi
Arabia, 13.321 million tonnes (6.434 million tonnes by PSUs and 6.887 million tonnes
by RPL).
While Iran accounted for 8.448 million tonnes, Kuwait gave India 11.958 million
tonnes. 4.967 million tonnes in 2001-02 came from United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the
remaining 53.429 million tonnes was imported from Yemen, Qatar, Dubai and Oman.
Sources said during April-October this fiscal, 33.301 million tonnes has been
imported from Middle East, with Saudi Arabia contributing 5.118 million tonnes, Iran
4.369 million tonnes and Kuwait 4.805 million tonnes.
"Oil companies are shifting their spot purchases from countries outside the conflict
zone like Malaysia, Nigeria, Egypt, Libya, West Africa and Red Sea," they said.
While all contingencies have been accounted for ensuring secure petroleum supplies,
the Iraq war spreading to neighbouring Kuwait may see Civil Aviation Ministry
mounting the biggest ever operation to evacuate Indian nationals from the region.
PTI
