In April 2024, India saw a seven percent increase in its crude oil imports compared to the previous year, with the net import bill for oil and gas reaching $12.3 billion, up from $10.1 billion in the same period last year, according to the latest data from the oil ministry's Petroleum Planning & Analysis Cell (PPAC). The crude oil imports amounted to $13.0 billion, while liquified natural gas (LNG) imports stood at $1.1 billion, and exports reached $3.7 billion.
The import dependence of crude oil in April was recorded at 88.4 percent, slightly lower than the 88.6 percent seen in the previous year. Domestic crude oil production in April 2024 reached 2.4 million metric tonnes (MMT), marking a 1.6 percent increase compared to the previous year. Among the contributors, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) produced 1.6 MMT of crude oil, while Oil India (OIL) and private sector producers contributed 0.3 MMT and 0.5 MMT, respectively.
India's total consumption of crude oil and petroleum products in April 2024 increased by 0.8 percent to 21.6 MMT. The average price of Brent Crude was $90.15/bbl during April, compared to $85.48/bbl in March 2024 and $84.94/bbl in the same period last year. The Indian basket crude price averaged $89.46/bbl last month, up from $84.49/bbl in March 2024 and $83.76/bbl in the previous year.
The consumption of petroleum products in April, totalling 19.9 MMT, saw a growth of 6.1 percent compared to the same period last year. This growth was driven by increases in motor spirit (MS) or petrol by 14.1 percent, high-speed diesel (HSD) by 1.3 percent, aviation turbine fuel (ATF) by 13.1 percent, liquified petroleum gas (LPG) by 9.4 percent, and naptha consumption by 3.9 percent, among others.
India's production of petroleum products in April 2024, totalling 23.4 MMT, was 3.9 percent higher than in April 2023, with 23.1 MMT from refinery production and 0.3 MMT from fractionator.
The total natural gas consumption, including internal consumption, for April was 5,515 MMSCM, a 6.4 percent increase from the same month last year. Gross natural gas production for April was 2,958 MMSCM, up by 7.8 percent compared to the corresponding month last year. LNG import for April 2024 reached 2,608 MMSCM, a 3.7 percent increase from the previous year.
In FY24, India's total consumption of crude oil and petroleum products increased by 4.6 percent to 233.3 MMT, while domestic production of crude oil saw a marginal rise of 0.6 percent. Domestic crude oil production remained almost unchanged at 29.4 MMT in 2023-24, compared to 29.2 MMT in the previous fiscal year. India remains dependent on imports to fulfill over 85 percent of its crude oil requirements and around 50 percent of its natural gas requirements.
