South Korea’s October Gasoil Exports May Decline on Maintenance

(Bloomberg) — South Korean refiners may reduce gasoil exports by 3 percent next month because of refinery maintenance at S-Oil Corp., officials at the companies said.

The refiners, including SK Energy Co., GS Caltex Corp. and Hyundai Oilbank Co., will export at most 8.7 million barrels in October, the officials said. The refiners planned to ship 9 million barrels this month.


S-Oil is shutting 43 percent of its 580,000 barrels-a-day refining capacity in October. It will close the 250,000 barrels- a-day No. 2 crude distillation unit at its Onsan refinery from Oct. 8 to Oct. 29 for maintenance, P.G. Kim, a company spokesman, said by telephone from Seoul on Sept. 21.

Asian benchmark gasoil with 0.5 percent sulfur was at a record $92.85 a barrel on Sept. 18 in Singapore, Asia’s largest trading center, according to Bloomberg data. Prices rose on increased demand from Vietnam, India and Indonesia for gasoil with 0.25 percent to 0.35 percent sulfur.

Bloomberg