Summary:
Several small plants such as job-work industries, foundries, forging industries and foundries use diesel and other petroleum products for furnaces and heat treatment equipment. Small and micro industrialists from the district say the hike in the price of diesel and other petroleum products has affected them in more ways than one. Because of this, we incur loss for several components we process,” he said.Overall, the increase in the prices of petroleum products has eaten away 12% of their profits, says Surulivel. Furnaces are mainly oil-fired and the price of furnace oil, which was around Rs20 two years ago, is around Rs40 now, say industrialists. “For example, the price of hydraulic oil, which was Rs88 to Rs90 earlier, had now hit Rs120 to Rs130,” he says.Several small industries which involve processes such as investment casting, forging and heat-treatment are oil-intensive..