AUSTRALIA DATA: Sep crude imports tumble to 14-month low; Q4 rebound expected

Imports of crude oil and other refinery feedstocks into Australia slumped to a 14-month low in September as refinery throughput fell sharply due to the lengthy movement restrictions that lasted throughout the third quarter.

The September crude imports were down 10% year on year and 5% lower month on month at 5.55 million barrels, preliminary data from Australia's Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources showed.

Imports in the first nine months of 2021 registered at 62.86 million barrels, down from 66.93 million barrels in the same period last year, the data showed.

Australia's two biggest cities -- Sydney and Melbourne -- remained under lockdowns throughout the Q3 and early October, leading to a sharp drop in general consumer transportation fuel consumption and ultimately lowering refinery crude runs, according to a plant operation source at Viva Energy's Geelong Refinery in the state of Victoria.

The country's crude runs fell to 225,000 b/d in September, down from 350,000 b/d a year earlier, according to data from S&P Global Platts Analytics.

However, the national average refinery crude throughput and crude oil imports are poised to rebound sharply in Q4 as major cities emerged from lockdowns after almost four months in mid-October, industry sources and market analysts said.

Australia's gasoline production is poised to recover to around 100,000 b/d by December from September's 92,000 b/d, according to Platts Analytics

Top suppliers

Malaysia shipped 2.98 million barrels in September, surging 87% year on year but down 21% month on month. The Southeast Asian country supplied 54% of the monthly total shipments.

About 43% of Australia's September crude import was evenly supplied by Brunei Darussalam, New Zealand, and Vietnam.

Volumes from Brunei picked up from zero in August to 872,853 barrels, according to the data.

Supply from New Zealand reached an 11-month high of 766,657 barrels, up 159% year on year and 156% month on month.

Vietnamese volumes surged to an 18-month high of 718,915 barrels, from zero in September 2020 and a 260% increase over August, the data showed.

AUSTRALIA'S CRUDE AND OTHER REFINERY FEEDSTOCK IMPORTS (Unit: barrels)

AUSTRLAIA'S TOP 5 CRUDE SUPPLIERS (Unit: barrels)

Source: Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources

Original data in megaliters, converted to barrels using a conversion factor of 6289.81