The Petcoke market in India has remained lackluster as the market players were waiting for the Supreme Court to announce its final verdict, which was not announced until the time of writing this report.
But, what could be made out from the buzz circulating among the market participants is that the court might allow usage of the fuel for industries equipped with anti-polluting devices, such as in the cement plants. Moreover, the central government is heard to be in the favor of banning Petcoke imports and encourage usage of domestically produced Petcoke. As a matter of fact, the demand for Petcoke in India is at around 25 MnTPA, out of which around 12 MnT is imported. Notably, eliminating the 12 MnT of imports will mean that 24-31 MnT of coal will have to be imported for replacement.
As there was no Petcoke import bookings, overseas suppliers have lowered their export offers. The latest offers for Petcoke (6.5% Sulphur) from USA are assessed at around USD 93/MT CFR India, down by around USD 9/MT over the week-ago offers. Likewise, the recent offers for Petcoke(9% Sulphur) from Saudi Arabia also have fallen by around USD 5/MT to around USD 90/MT CFR India against the offers in the week last.
Source: CoalMint Research
In the home market, Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), the country’s largest producer, has lowered its ex-works price by INR 450/MT to INR 7,650/MT with effect from 1Dec’17; while, Essar, the second largest producer in the country, also lowered its ex-works price by INR 450/MT to 7,640/MT. In a contrasting note, Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited has raised its ex-works price by INR 180/MT to INR 7,130/MT with effect from 1 Dec’17—apparently to capitalize upon the prevailing demand in the regions of the country unaffected by the Supreme Court ban.
Source: CoalMint Research
The dynamics of the market will take a decisive turn only after the apex court announcing its final verdict.
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