Indian Refining Industry Seen Running at Capacity: Adipec Update
Egypt Aims to Double Cars Running on Natural Gas: Adipec Update
(Bloomberg) -- Adipec, one of the biggest energy events in the Middle East and North Africa, is in its fourth and final day. Usually hosted in Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates, this year’s conference is virtual.
Sudan’s acting energy minister and Canada’s associate deputy minister of natural resources are speaking on Thursday.
The event opened on Monday with crude prices under pressure from an acceleration in coronavirus cases in major economies and new lockdowns in Europe. Oil jumped on reports of a potential Covid-19 vaccine breakthrough, and benchmark Brent crude is trading around 11% higher this week near $44 a barrel.
Here are the latest developments, updated throughout the day. (Time stamps are local in Abu Dhabi.)
India’s Refining Industry Is Running at Capacity: IOC Chairman (Thursday 3:35 p.m.)
India’s refineries have been processing at capacity since the first week of November, and its market for refined products should be “near normal” by the first quarter of next year, Indian Oil Corp. Chairman Shrikant Madhav Vaidya said. Demand for gasoline and gasoil is back to pre-coronavirus levels, while jet-fuel use is at about 60% of what it was before the virus, he said. IOC is expanding into petrochemicals because refining margins aren’t sustainable. India’s natural gas use is seen rising to 15% of total energy demand by 2030 from 6% now, Vaidya said.
Cepsa Sees European Refineries Closing on Covid (3:08 p.m.)
Fuel demand in Europe is recovering more slowly than in Asia, and this will lead some European refineries to close, according to Cepsa Chief Executive Officer Philippe Boisseau. European refineries are more likely to shut down as a result of the coronavirus impact than they were during previous crises in the industry, he said.
Sudan’s Energy Demand to Double by 2035: Minister (2:33 p.m.)
Energy demand in Sudan will rise to 240,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day by 2035 from 120,000 currently, Acting Energy Minister Khairy Abdel Rahman said. The country’s demand growth presents potential investment opportunities. Sudan’s government is under pressure from the effects of the pandemic and needs international support to meet its goals, Rahman said.
From Wednesday:
Nigeria Remains Committed to OPEC+ Efforts: Minister (2:39 p.m.)
Nigeria remains committed to efforts by OPEC and allied producers to regain balance in global oil markets, Timipre Sylva, the country’s minister of state for oil, said. Nigeria has been among the laggards in the OPEC+ group as some producers, struggling with diminished government income, have been slow to meet their output quotas. Producers and consumers need to cooperate to pull the industry out of its current crisis, he said.
Indonesia to Almost Double Oil-Refining Capacity: Minister (1:06 p.m.)
Indonesia plans to boost its oil-refining capacity to 1.9 million barrels a day from 1 million currently, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Arifin Tasrif said. While he didn’t specify timing for the expansion, Indonesia’s state-run energy company PT Pertamina said in July that it targeted refining capacity of 1.8 million barrels a day by 2027. The minister said the Southeast Asian country also plans to make natural gas a bigger part of its energy mix, increasing it to 24% by 2050 from 22% in 2025.
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