IOC has started seeking heavier and cheaper crude as it completes a facility at Mundra in southern India that will be used to blend crude for the Panipat refinery.
The capacity of IOC's Panipat refinery was doubled last year to 240,000 barrels per day and traders said IOC would likely issue similar tenders on a regular basis once the new facility and storage are completed.
OC, which has about 10 refineries spread across India for a total capacity of 1.204 million bpd, tenders several times a month to buy crude, mainly light sweet West African grades.
India's crude oil imports jumped 34.9 per cent
India's crude oil imports jumped 34.9 per cent in April while fuel consumption rose 5 per cent on robust growth in manufacturing and other sectors.
Crude imports rose to 10.99 million tons in April this year from 8.15 million tons the previous year on back of 16.5 million tons of refining capacity added since April 2006, an All India Radio (AIR) report said here.
Domestic fuel demand increased five per cent to 10.273 million tons on back of robust 8.4 per cent growth in diesel consumption to 3.96 million tons. Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) consumption also saw a 13.3 per cent increase to 911,200 tons in April.
With rise in domestic production, imports fell 24.7 per cent to 1.098 million tons as petrol, kerosene and other industrial fuel imports went down. But LPG imports were up 91.2 per cent to 203,000 tons and naphtha almost doubled to 350,600 tons.
Robust GDP growth and extremely good performance by manufacturing sector was fuelling the growth in domestic consumption, a government official said.
