New Delhi: The rapid take-up of electric vehicles in India's fledgling market has prompted a major rethink about the country's long-term fuel needs as refiners in Asia's third-largest economy hasten their shift away from oil production.

India has lagged major economic peers in Europe & Asia in the adoption of EVs but sales are picking up & investment in the production of new autos & energy infrastructure is accelerating..

The transport sector accounts for 18% of total energy consumption in India. This translates to an estimated 94 million tonnes of oil equivalent (MTOE) energy. If India were to follow the current trends of energy consumption, it would require an estimated 200 MTOE of energy supply annually, by the year 2030 to meet the demand of this sector.

Slowing fuel demand will be quite visible by around 2030 as EV technologies stabilise, compared with an earlier projection of 2040s, an industry source at an India-based refinery told Reuters, adding that heavy trucking sector will see changes a little later.

"Refiners are already investing in petrochemical integration to cope with the potential loss in fuel demand," said the source who declined to be named because he is not authorised to speak to the media.