Fire extinguished at Indian refinery as Gulf oil supplies recover

The fire broke out in a tank at the residue-upgradation unit of Hindustan Petroleum’s Visak refinery and caused no injuries as India imports about 2.3 million barrels per day of Middle Eastern oil.

A fire broke out on Monday evening in a tank inside the residue-upgradation unit at the state-owned Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) Visak refinery in the coastal city of Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh, southeastern India. Fire crews brought it under control without any casualties.

Visakhapatnam Police Commissioner Shankabrata Bagchi said the fire caused no casualties and remained confined to the tank without posing a threat to other parts of the refinery. Authorities said the thick smoke that covered nearby neighborhoods did not pose a danger to residents.

Conflicting accounts of an explosion

Deccan Chronicle reported that the fire broke out at around 10:15 p.m. local time, or 7:45 p.m. Mecca time, and that smoke was visible from the Malkapuram and Sriharipuram neighborhoods. Residents described hearing sounds resembling an explosion, while administrative official Dileep Chakravarthy characterized the incident as a small explosion followed by a fire. The Times of India quoted company sources as saying that a tank explosion was unlikely.

Police Inspector Prakash Rao said refinery fire crews brought the blaze under control within an hour. Chakravarthy told ANI that the fire had been fully extinguished and said an investigation into industrial safety standards at the facility had been opened. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.

Black smoke cloud above the Visak refinery facilities in Visakhapatnam

Gulf oil and Asian supplies

The incident comes as India imports record volumes of crude. Its imports reached about 5.6 million barrels per day in October, according to Kpler data, including approximately 2.3 million barrels from the Middle East. Ship-to-ship transfers helped more shipments pass through the Strait of Hormuz in September and October, supporting the recovery of Gulf supplies after disruptions in the strait since late February.

Arab News, citing Kpler data, reported that India’s imports from Iraq reached about 575,000 barrels per day in September, while imports from Saudi Arabia stood at approximately 566,000 barrels and those from Kuwait at about 331,000 barrels. Madhu Nainan of the Petrowatch newsletter said the Gulf is the closest source for Indian refineries, with shipments arriving in six or seven days compared with at least a month from the United States.

The Visak refinery has an annual refining capacity of 15 million tonnes following its upgrade. Its residue-upgradation unit, which began operations in January, houses the world’s first LC-Max unit. The company has not yet announced whether the fire affected production.

Video: Social media / ConflictTR · Photos: ANI, Deccan Chronicle

Fire extinguished at Indian refinery as Gulf oil supplies recover

The fire broke out in a tank at the residue-upgradation unit of Hindustan Petroleum’s Visak refinery and caused no injuries as India imports about 2.3 million barrels per day of Middle Eastern oil.