India's crude oil production falls 2.3% in August, gas output rises

Without giving a break-up, the notes to the data said, "Increase in gas production... is due to production from new fields D-34 and Satellite Cluster of KG-DWN-98/3 (KG-D6) where production commenced in December 2020 and April 2021 respectively." Reliance Industries and its partner BP Plc of UK operate the KG-D6 fields. ONGC, the nation's largest oil and gas producer, produced 4 percent less crude oil at 1.6 million tonne and 9 percent less gas at 1.7 bcm.

As fuel demand rebounded, oil refineries processed more crude oil in August. At 18.4 million tonne, crude processing in August was 14.17 percent higher than the year-ago period. The crude throughput has been on the rise in the last few months as the easing of coronavirus restrictions boosted economic activity and fed demand for fuel.

Public sector refineries processed 13.6 percent more crude at nearly 10 million tonne while private refiner Reliance Industries turned 16.4 percent more crude into fuel. Refineries produced 9 percent more petroleum products in August at 19.5 million tonne and 12 percent more in April-August at 100.2 million tonne.

Overall, the refineries operated at 87 percent of their installed capacity as against 76.1 percent capacity utilisation in August 2020.