Transport fuel demand rising

Transport fuel demand rising

SINGAPORE (AFP): Asia-Pacific demand for transport fuels is
expected to grow by up to five percent a year until the end of
the decade, the president of Singapore Petroleum Corp. Ltd. (SPC)
said yesterday.

Regional demand was rising due to surging consumption in
countries such as Thailand, Indonesia, China and India where
demand for petroleum transport products could grow by 10-15
percent a year in the run-up to 2000, Cheng Hong Kok said.

Cheng, who is also chief executive of SPC, was speaking to
reporters on the eve of the official inauguration of a residue
catalytic cracker complex run by its subsidiary, the Singapore
Refining Co. Pte. Ltd. (SRC)

SRC is a joint venture between SPC, British Petroleum and
Caltex who have together invested S$1.4 billion (US$1 billion) in
the cracker.

The complex will upgrade 33,000 barrels per day of low-value,
heavy residue into high-value motor gasoline.

Cheng predicted that oil refining margins could improve in the
long term after an expected dip later this year when new capacity
comes on stream in Thailand and South Korea.