Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd. (Head Office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Kazuhisa Nakano) announces that it has decided that total crude oil refining of the four refineries scheduled for the 2Q of 2009 will be 7.0 million KL, 83% against the same period of the previous year.
The volume of crude oil refining above is a 1.4 million Kℓ reduction from a year earlier, which is attributable to the continuing decreases in demand mainly for diesel oil due to the economic deterioration, and the softened supply and demand of middle distillates caused by decreased exports owing to the sluggish overseas markets and an increase in inventories in the domestic market.
The Company estimates that if demand for petroleum products continues to decline further, the domestic supply should be adjusted by reducing refining of crude oil to around 85% against the same period last year in order to adjust the supply-demand. This level of production translates to a facility operating rate of around 70% for the whole refineries.
Under these conditions, to cut back crude oil refining effectively, the Company will postpone the date of restarting operations for one week in Hokkaido Refinery, which is now under the turn-around, and has started to investigate the possibility of moving forward by 10 days the date of shutdown of Aichi Refinery, which is scheduled for regular turn-around from October this year. The Company intends to carry forward the production cutbacks by combining the above adjustments.
For reference
| April – June | 6.6 million Kℓ | 83% |
|---|---|---|
| July | 2.1 million Kℓ | 74% |
For inquiries regarding this press release, please contact
Mr. Sato
PR Section IR&PR Office
Idemitsu Kosan, Co., Ltd.
Tel: +81-3-3213-3115
