An official told the media that India’s imports of petcoke might be over double this year as competitive prices are pushing cement makers to switch to fuel as an alternative to coal.
Petcoke is more expensive than coal but produces more energy when burnt. It is widely used by the cement industry, which is its largest consumer, as sulphur dioxide emissions are absorbed by limestone.
Global coal prices are at peak highs due to a supply crunch following the European Commission’s decision to ban coal imports from Russia after it invaded Ukraine.
Domestic coal supplies to utilities to address a power crisis and increased internal use of domestic petcoke by refineries are contributing to higher imports.
The consumption surged 34% to 4.2 million tonnes (mt) during the March-end quarter, the fastest pace in nearly six years and the first quarterly growth in over two years.
According to Iman Resources, imported petcoke accounted for about half the total consumption during the quarter, with Saudi Arabia and the US accounting for the bulk of shipments.
Indian coal trader I-Energy said that the import of fuel-grade petcoke was slow in 2021 due to the high price and supply crunch. But fuel-grade petcoke is again becoming competitive with coal, and its users are switching from coal to petcoke.
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Also read: 73% rise in Petcoke import in India in December 2021