Thai state-controlled refiner IRPC has delayed the restart of its 215,000 b/d Mab Ta Phut refinery after a scheduled turnaround, which has also held up its bitumen production.
The refinery had a planned 15-day maintenance at one of its crude distillation units that started from 15 March and was due to finish on 3 April. But the restart was delayed to yesterday with bitumen production to resume today. Domestic bitumen supplies from IRPC will only be available from tomorrow onwards. It plans to divert initial volumes towards fulfilling term export commitments.
Bitumen production was halted during the refinery turnaround. This added further tightness to domestic supplies during Thailand's peak road construction season. This typically occurs during January-April, just before the country's Songkran new year holiday during 13-15 April.
Domestic bitumen prices in Thailand have firmed since February, when domestic demand increased with the start of its road construction season.
Argus assessed Thai domestic bitumen prices at $500-600/t ex-refinery in the week ending 1 April. Offers were above $600/t, with no bitumen sales from IRPC since 27 March because of its limited availability.
