Asia Naphtha-India BPCL sells July-Sept Kochi lots

Singapore, June 25 (Reuters) India's Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd. (BPCL) has sold a total 81,000 tonnes of naphtha to be loaded from Kochi during July-September to Japanese traders Itochu and Mitsui, traders said on Monday.

Itochu will take a 27,000-tonne cargo for July 12-16 loading, and Mitsui will pick up one 27,000-tonne cargo each month in August and September, one trader said.

BPCL sold the cargoes at low-to-mid single-digit premium to Middle East spot quotes, on a free-on-board basis, the traders said.

The premium was lower than the last term sales when BPCL sold in April a total 135,000 tonnes of low-aromatic naphtha from June 2007 to March 2008 to a Japanese refiner Idemitsu at more than a tonne premium to the Middle East quotes, FOB basis.

The Asian naphtha market has weakened this month due to ample supplies of prompt July-arrival cargoes. Asian naphtha premium to Brent crude was last quoted at 1 a tonne, well below record-high levels of 6 hit last month.

BPCL plans to reduce naphtha exports from the Kochi refinery after it expands the capacity of the refinery by 40,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 190,000 bpd by September 2009.

REUTERS KR HS1703