MUSCAT, MUSCAT, OMAN, August 30, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Only two days remain before the 20th Edition of the Rex Fuels Global Expo & Conference opens on 31 August 2026 at the Grand Millennium Muscat, Oman. This event unites the bitumen, fuels, refining, road construction and logistics sectors at a crucial moment for the industry.
The timing holds significance for a clear reason.
Across India and the Middle East, road construction is advancing on a scale that is starting to reshape bitumen demand, petroleum product flows, and the ties between producers and consumer markets. At the same time, disruptions throughout West Asia have highlighted how rapidly events in one supply-chain segment can impact a highway project situated thousands of kilometres away.
The road ahead is literally being built. Yet the larger question remains: who will provide the materials, how will those materials move, and what will the industry's supply chain resemble five years from now?This is where Oman becomes especially significant.
India's road expansion tells its own demand story
India's road programme has grown dramatically over the past decade. According to the Government of India, the country's National Highway network expanded from 91,287 km in 2014 to 146,560 km. Over the same period, the length of four-lane-and-above National Highways more than doubled to 43,512 km, while operational access-controlled expressways and high-speed corridors reached 3,052 km.
These figures translate into a genuine need for paving materials.
In 2025, India consumed roughly 8.74 million tonnes of bitumen, compared with 8.43 million tonnes in 2024. The country's requirement is expected to stay significant as highway construction and maintenance continue.
Yet domestic production cannot fully meet India's entire bitumen requirement. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari stated in May 2026 that India needs about 12 million tonnes of bitumen each year, while domestic petroleum companies have capacity for roughly 5 million tonnes, leaving a substantial import gap.
That shortfall has made the international bitumen trade strategically vital. And 2026 has demonstrated why supply chains matter. The challenge is not simply demand—it is availability.
India's bitumen imports dropped sharply during the first half of 2026 due to disruptions linked to the West Asia conflict. Indian customs data reported by Argus shows that imports totalled approximately 905,000 tonnes between January and June 2026, a decline of about 50% from the same period in 2025.
Second-quarter imports fell by roughly 68% year on year. This is more than just a trade statistic.
When vessels face delays, routes become uncertain or cargoes cannot move, the effects can reach road contractors, project timelines and construction expenses. Recent reporting has also underscored India's reliance on West Asian suppliers, with more than 99% of India's bitumen imports sourced from Iraq, the UAE, Iran, Oman and Bahrain.
The link between the Gulf and India's road-building programme has thus become impossible to overlook.
And this is precisely why gathering the industry in Oman at this particular moment carries weight.
Oman occupies a central position in the discussion
Oman is not merely a host location for an international industry event. Its geography and evolving infrastructure place it directly within the trade corridors that are shaping the regional bitumen business.
World Bank trade data indicates that Oman exported 27.36 million kg of petroleum bitumen in 2023, with 24.57 million kg destined for India. In other words, India accounted for nearly 90% of Oman's petroleum bitumen exports that year.
That relationship has continued to make India a key destination for Omani bitumen.
At the same time, Oman itself is investing in the infrastructure needed to support its next phase of economic growth. Under Oman Vision 2040, strategic road projects include the 135-km fourth stage of the Sultan Said bin Taimur Road and the approximately 71-km Sultan Faisal bin Turki Road, along with capacity upgrades to the Al Rusayl–Nizwa corridor and the Muscat Expressway.
Duqm offers perhaps the clearest indication of where the country's infrastructure ambitions are headed.
A new dual carriageway connecting Duqm Airport and Ras Markaz extends more than 51 km, linking the airport with oil storage facilities and major industrial developments. Additional road projects within the Special Economic Zone at Duqm bring the combined length of two major road developments to approximately 67 km, connecting industrial, commercial, logistics and renewable-energy developments.
More recently, Oman awarded 74 government contracts worth RO734 million during the first seven months of 2026, with roads and transport among the sectors driving infrastructure spending. A RO157 million expansion of the Muscat Expressway was among the major contracts awarded during this period.
This is the Oman that participants will find when they arrive for the conference—not merely a meeting place, but a market where logistics, energy, infrastructure and industrial development are converging.
The conference becomes part of that broader picture
This makes the 20th Edition of the Rex Fuels Global Expo & Conference particularly timely.
The value of meeting in person is different when an industry faces uncertainty. This is not a market where the conversation can end at the price per tonne of bitumen. Producers need to understand where demand is heading.
Buyers require greater visibility into supply. Traders are monitoring freight and regional availability. Logistics companies are adapting to shifting routes. Road contractors need continuity.
All of these questions converge at the same point.
The future of road construction is increasingly a supply-chain narrative.
A highway in India can hinge on a cargo originating in the Gulf. A refinery's production decisions can affect the economics of a road project. A disruption in maritime traffic can alter procurement strategies. A new industrial zone in Oman can generate simultaneous demand for roads, storage, logistics and energy products.
The conference offers an opportunity to bring these separate pieces of the industry around the same table.
And Oman provides something more: a chance to see where the industry may be heading.
Sandip Mukherjee
Rex Fuels Management Pvt Ltd
+91 91673 64282
conferences@rexfuels.com
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Rex Fuels Global Expo & Conference 2026 Muscat
