Muscat: Oman’s petroleum industry experienced a notable decrease of 1.8% in total refinery and petroleum products during the first half of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023. The drop is attributed to varying trends in fuel production and sales across different categories.

In June alone, the production of motor fuel plummeted by 27.1% from the previous month. Specifically, the production of regular motor fuel (91) fell by 9.5%, with 7.48 million barrels produced and sales of 6.83 million barrels. In contrast, premium motor fuel (95) saw a 9.8% rise in production, totaling 6.56 million barrels, though sales lagged slightly behind at 6.41 million barrels.

Gas oil (diesel) production decreased by 6.2% to 16.09 million barrels, with sales at 6.82 million barrels. Jet fuel production saw a modest increase of 2.3%, reaching 5.62 million barrels, while sales were at 1.99 million barrels. LPG production also fell short, recording 4.48 million barrels, with sales exceeding production at 5.03 million barrels.

In the petrochemical sector, gasoline production rose 6.5% to 83,500 metric tons, while paraxylene production increased by 4.6% to 265,100 metric tons. Polypropylene production declined by 23.7% to 101,800 metric tons, though sales of polypropylene surged by 25.7% to 17,000 metric tons.

Exports painted a mixed picture: automotive fuel (91) exports climbed 16.2% to 1.41 million barrels, and fuel (95) exports soared 53.5% to 572,800 barrels. Gas oil (diesel) and jet fuel exports stood at 9.06 million barrels and 3.61 million barrels, respectively. LPG exports totalled 280,600 barrels. In the petrochemical domain, paraxylene exports reached 254,700 metric tons, benzene exports totalled 81,500 metric tons, and polypropylene exports were 81,200 metric tons.