India to Complete Building First Oil Storage Tank by Mid-2011

(Bloomberg) — India will complete building its first crude oil storage terminal by the middle of next year as it seeks to insulate the country against price fluctuations and ensure fuel supplies.

The tank at Visakhapatnam on the east coast will have a capacity of 1.33 million metric tons, Oil Secretary S. Sundareshan said in an interview at his office in New Delhi. The nation

India, which imports 77 percent of its oil needs, is emulating programs in the U.S., Japan and China to build an emergency stockpile. Crude declined from a record $147.27 a barrel in July 2008 as demand fell following the worst global recession since the World War II. Prices have gained 86 percent in the past year as economies recover.