India’s domestic pet coke production in October 2022 stood at 1.22 million tonne (mnt), a fall of almost 7% y-o-y. The country’s monthly average pet coke production last financial year was at 1.29 mnt. Therefore, production in October was recorded 6% lower than the monthly average of last fiscal.
Pet coke production fell due to some pet coke plants being under maintenance, leading to tight domestic supply.
Consumption
However, consumption increased as cement demand improved in October this year post-monsoons and on improved availability of labour. In terms of India’s pet coke consumption, the same in October stood at 1.34 mnt, almost same compared to October 2021. Total monthly consumption last year stood at an average of 1.18 mnt. Consumption in October 2022 was 14% higher than the annual average of last year.
Jan-Oct, 2022 production, consumption up
India’s pet coke production for January-October, 2022 stood at 12.97 mnt, an increase of 16% against the same period last year whereas pet coke consumption rose by 21% y-o-y to 13.15 mnt for the period. However, in the same period last year, the country was still suffering from Covid-19 which had hampered both production and consumption. It may be mentioned production over January-October, 2021 had been at 11.15 mnt and consumption, at 10.88 mnt.
State-wise pet coke sales
Domestic pet coke sales stood at 0.86 mnt in October 2020 as against 0.80 mnt in October 2021. Notably, the above data includes all types of petroleum coke, including fuel, anode (LS) and calcined grades.
Qty in mnt
Rajasthan continues to be the leader amongst all the states where domestic sales were the highest for the period April-October, 2022. The reason is that the state has the highest concentration of cement plants.
On a cumulative basis, in April-October, 2022, Andhra Pradesh recorded the highest growth at 67%, followed by Madhya Pradesh at 31%.
Imported pet coke prices cheaper than domestic
Cement manufacturers are preferring imported pet coke over thermal coal and domestic pet coke due to their elevated prices. Thermal coal prices remained elevated at $250-$330/t (Richards Bay) between March-October, 2022. However, the same decreased by 15% in October.
Imported pet coke prices are assessed at $186/t CNF India for Saudi origin and $188/t CNF for US origin, whereas domestic pet coke prices from major refineries were assessed at INR 17,000-18,000/t ex-works ($208-$220/t).
Short-term outlook
The cement industry had been under significant pressure as a result of the sharp increase in global energy prices. The recent decline in energy prices and post-monsoon demand appear to be a silver lining which means India’s domestic pet coke production and consumption will possiby continue to move up in the coming quarters.
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