In a first, the country's largest oil refiner and marketer, IndianOil Corporation has exported a consignment of AVGAS 100 LL, a special aviation fuel meant for piston engine aircrafts and unmanned ariel vehicles, to Papua New Guinea on Saturday.
The consignment consisted of 16 KL of AVGAS packed in 80 barrels. This is the first ever instance of India exporting AVGAS.
“The global aviation gasoline market is projected to grow at 5% CAGR. The Aviation traffic in India is also likely to grow by 7%. 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,” said S M Vaidya, Chairman, IndiaOil Corporation.
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.
IndiaOil 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 IndiaOil’s Gujarat Refinery which has a capacity of 5TMT per annum.
The domestic production of AVGAS 100 LL produced by IndiaOil at its Gujarat Refinery will make flying training more affordable in India and abroad, the company said in a statement.
There is a significant consumption of AVGAS in countries in South America, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Africa and Europe. Therefore, there is a great opportunity to export AVGAS beyond the shores of India, the company said.
AV GAS 100 LL produced by IndiaOil’s flagship refinery at Vadodara has been tested and certified by Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the statutory body of the Government of India to regulate civil aviation in India.
It is a higher-octane Aviation fuel meeting the product specifications with superior performance quality standards, as compared to imported grades.
The indigenous availability of AV GAS 100 LL will help reduce dependence on imports and address the associated logistical challenges. Country will be able to save precious foreign exchange with the inhouse availability of this product.
Source Name:-Economic Times