UNI

New Delhi, Jul 3: India was the sixth largest producer of petroleum products with 118 million tonnes of production in 2004-05 and accounted for over one per cent share in major petroleum products in the world, an Export-Import Bank of India study said.

The study noted that the country exported petroleum products including kerosene, and aviation turbine fuel worth 6.8 billion dollar in 2004-05, accounting for 8.57 per cent of the total exports.

In 2000-01, the petroloeum products formed 4.59 per cent of the country's exports.

Pointing out that the top three export markets for Indian petroleum products were Singapore (25.5 per cent), Iran (9.8 per cent) and UAE (7.4 per cent), the study said that lot of potential existed for expanding its presence in other Asian markets.

India holds over 10 per cent share in Singapore petroleum market.

The paper on 'Indian Petroleum Products Industry: Opportunities and Challanges,' listed various challanges like price volatality of crude oil and supply disruptions as hindrances that hinder the export growth of Indian Petroleum products industry.

Increasing strategic reserves within and outside the country through joint ventures and energy agreements, integration of existing refineries, increasing refining capacities and improving the quality of products by research activities, were some of the measures suggested by the study.