31 August,2026 03:42 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondent
Indian Oil Corporation. Pic sourced via X.
Amid the West Asia crisis that threatened global energy supplies, state-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) on Monday said it boosted its liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) production by nearly 30 per cent during this time, according to news agency PTI.
"Despite a significant shift away from Middle Eastern crude grades, our refineries operated above 100 per cent utilisation, LPG production was ramped up by nearly 30 per cent within a short period, and our gas business maintained supplies to priority sectors while securing additional LNG from diversified geographies," IOC chairman Arvinder Singh Sahney said at the company's 67th annual general meeting.
In the first quarter of the current financial year, IOC processed a record 19.17 million tonnes of crude at 109.4 per cent capacity utilisation, while pipeline throughput reached a quarterly record of 28.55 million tonnes, as per PTI.
The company's domestic petroleum-product market share rose to 43.1 per cent, Sahney said.
"While profitability during the quarter remained under pressure from higher crude costs arising from the West Asia conflict, the strength of our operating performance gives us confidence in the underlying resilience of your company," he said.
India is the world's third-largest oil consumer and imports more than 88 per cent of its crude oil requirement. Around 45 per cent of its crude imports and nearly 90 per cent of LPG imports are linked to the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway that is affected due to the conflict between US and Iran.
As the conflict disrupted the global crude oil supply, Sahney said the company diversified crude sourcing, realigned refinery operations and secured alternative supplies.
"For Indian Oil, the priority during this unprecedented crisis has remained crystal clear: to maintain continuity of energy supplies despite constrained sourcing options and volatile international markets," he said.
"With close monitoring and guidance from the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, our teams have responded with agility, diversifying crude sourcing, realigning refinery operations and strengthening supply-chain coordination to secure alternate supplies, optimise cargo movements and rebalance products across regions," he added.
The IOC Chairman further said the company used 24-hour control rooms, daily reviews and real-time market monitoring to respond to supply gaps, adding that the company had maintained product availability despite a "significant shift away from Middle Eastern crude grades."
Sahney said the experience of the West Asia crisis had reinforced the need to be better prepared to face possible disruptions.
"Resilience has to be built before it is tested," he said. "In an uncertain world, energy security depends not only on scale, but equally on agility, diversification and preparedness," he added.
IOC plans to evolve into a more diversified and integrated energy company while prioritising national energy security, he said.
"In moments of national need, the country's energy security comes first," he said.
The state-run oil marketing company is ramping up investment in its core refining operations. The IOC's group refining capacity is expected to increase to around 98 million tonnes from 80.75 million tonnes a year at present once it completes its expansion projects at Panipat, Gujarat and Barauni.
With India expanding its refining capacity toward 300 million tonnes a year, IOC expects to account for more than 40 per cent of the incremental capacity, Sahney said.
Besides, the company is looking to reduce its dependence on its traditional refining business, targeting higher contributions from petrochemicals, natural gas, renewables, biofuels, green hydrogen and sustainable aviation fuel.
By 2030, it plans to raise its petrochemical intensity to about 15 per cent and increase natural-gas sales 1.5 times. Additionally, it aims to raise upstream integration to more than 10 per cent by 2031, as per PTI.
(With inputs from PTI)
