Haldia Petro to put Rs.28, 700 cr in Odisha Refinery. The Odisha government cleared a Haldia Petrochemicals proposal to invest Rs.28, 700 crore for setting up an integrated refinery and petrochem facility in Balasore. A panel led by chief minister Naveen Patnaik approved the proposal. State-owned land will be allotted and fiscal concessions considered, said a state official said, “Haldia Petro has sought certain concessions. We are setting up a panel to examine it, “the official said. The government, PETCHEM BUZZ Issue: CPMA/015/2019 March 2019 Monthly Newsletter from 1 | March 2019 RCEP members agree to push for trade pact. The 16 members of the RCEP group, including India and China agreed to intensify the ongoing negotiations for proposed mega trade agreement to resolve all issues and conclude the talks this year. The progress of negotiations was reviewed during a meeting of the trade ministers of all 16 countires in Cambodia. To ensure that progress is made towards meeting the leaders target for conclusion in 2019, the ministers agreed to intensify engagement for the remaining of the year, including by convening more intersessonal meetings, the commerce ministry said quoting a joint statement issued after the meeting. Crude pares earlier losses as market searches for direction; WT crude futures hover below $59 after 1.6% drop. Crude oil prices toggled between gains and losses as anxious traders weighed a slowdown in the global economy with increasing tensions in OPEC member Venezuela. Crude output continues to fall. Domestic crude oil output shrank 4% in the eleven months through February from a year earlier, continuing the declining trend for the seven fiscal year in a row and pushing up India’s dependence on imports. Imports met 83.8% of local oil needs during April- Feb of 2018-19, up from 75.9% in 2011-12. Local production began falling in 2012-13 and has declined every year since despite billions of dollars of investments in sustaining production from ageing fields and finding new sources of oi. All State-Run Oil Cos, exceed capex target Indian Oil, Hindustan Petrochem, Bharat Petroleum, Industry Snippets continued on page 2 Member Companies in the News CPMA Global Oil Market Crude oil prices increased for the third consecutive month in March and are trading near the middle of the range established over the previous year. Increasing crude oil supply disruptions and voluntary reductions in oil production from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries are among the recent price drivers in the crude oil market. Recent manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Indexes (PMI) in several European countries are showing continued contraction in their manufacturing sectors. In the US, the Treasury yield curve inverted in March for the first time since 2007, a phenomenon that indicates a combination of tight monetary policy, investment risk aversion, and lower long- term economic growth expectations. However, manufacturing PMI surveys in the US and China increased in March, and the US Federal Reserve indicated it is unlikely to increase interest rates for the remainder of 2019, all factors that could signify a reversal of some of the negative economic indicators and support economic growth, and consequently crude oil prices. Commentary for the month Due to a slightly tighter global oil market, the US Energy Information Administration, in its latest Short-Term Energy outlook, forecasts Brent spot prices to average $65/bbl in 2019, up $2/bbl from last month’s STEO forecast, and $62/bbl in 2020. These compare with an average of $71/ bbl in 2018. Oil climbed about 2% to new 2019 highs in March end, with Brent crude touching $69 a barrel, after positive signs for the global economy and tighter supplies drove both benchmarks’ largest first-quarter gains in nearly a decade. China’s manufacturing sector unexpectedly returned to growth for the first time in four months in March. U.S. manufacturing numbers also came in better-than-expected in March, helping investors overlook soft retail sales data for February. The United States and China have made a statement on progress in trade talks in Beijing, with Washington saying the negotiations were “candid and constructive” as the world’s two largest economies try to resolve their trade war. With OPEC putting on the breaks and US production declining, inventories could contract to send crude oil prices higher. however, will not take any equity in the project. HPCL may soon become a Maharatna, 9th in league. The department of public enterprises (DPE) is in the process of conferring Maharatna status to Mumbai-based Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL). If cleared, the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) arm will become the first subsidiary company of an existing Maharatna to get into this superior league among government-owned entities. Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) will take 50 acre land on lease in Gorakhpur, the home turf of chief minister Yogi Adityanath, for setting up an ethanol plant costing nearly Rs 800 crore. Indian Oil Corp (IOC) has declared a second interim dividend of Rs 1,412 crore for the current financial year and ONGC agreed to do so next week to help the government meet its tax revenue target.