New Delhi: Mr. S M Vaidya, Chairman, IndianOil flagged off the first export consignment of AVGAS 100 LL to Papua New Guinea from GTI Terminal of JNPT on Saturday, January 28, 2023, at 3.00 PM (tentative time). The consignment consisted of 16 KL of AVGAS packed in 80 barrels. This is the first-ever instance of India exporting AVGAS.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Vaidya, said, “The global aviation gasoline market is projected to grow at 5% CAGR. Aviation traffic in India is also likely to grow by 7%. IndianOil is fully geared to explore the possible business avenues opened up with the manufacturing of this product. With superior performance quality standards and competitive prices, IndianOil is aiming to secure a significant market share. The indigenous production of AVGAS 100 LL in India will not only help in saving foreign exchange on imports but will make pilot training in domestic flying institutes economical for budding pilots.”
In India, until very recently, AVGAS 100 LL fuel primarily used by Flying Training Organisations (FTOs) and Defence forces was imported at a huge cost from European countries for decades. Under the Prime Minister’s ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ vision, IndianOil launched the indigenous production of aviation fuel AVGAS 100 LL on September 26, 2022, at Air Force Station, Hindan and the same is now being extensively used in the domestic market. The present production of AVGAS 100 LL is being done from IndianOil’s Gujarat Refinery which has a capacity of 5TMT per annum. The domestic production of AVGAS 100 LL produced by Indian Oil at its Gujarat Refinery will make flying training more affordable in India and abroad.
There is a significant consumption of AVGAS in countries in South America, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. Therefore, there is a great opportunity to export AVGAS beyond the shores of India. As a first step in this direction, the first parcel of AVGAS produced in India was exported on a date.