Indian Army received smokeless fuel during Operation Sindoor; here is why LSLA SKO is an asset in critical border areas

The supply of Low Sulphur Low Aromatics SKO (LSLA SKO) by the Guwahati Refinery played a vital role in supporting the Indian Army during Operation Sindoor. The Guwahati Refinery, owned by Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), announced on Thursday that it had exclusively supplied 19,000 metric tonnes (TMT) of smokeless fuel to the Indian armed forces during Operation Sindoor.

In an interaction with senior journalists, Guwahati Refinery (GR) executive director Sunil Kanti said the unit is one of the very few in the country which can produce LSLA SKO, and it was the sole unit to provide the specialised fuel to the army during Operation Sindoor. "The Indian Army had requested us some time ago to produce a special fuel which would not emit smoke. They wanted it to keep our soldiers warm in extreme cold conditions. Usually, all types of fuels emit smoke when they are burnt," Kanti was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

Kanti said that the research and development wing of Guwahati Refinery then developed LSLA SKO for the armed forces stationed in high-altitude locations. "During Operation Sindoor, only our refinery produced and supplied 19 TMT of LSLA SKO within record time. The product was transported to Misamari, Siliguri, and Agra for further transportation to Army bases in cold border areas," PTI quoted him as saying.

Why does smokeless fuel matter?

Smoke can reveal troop locations, especially in high-altitude and border areas—making the use of conventional fuels risky. The availability of Low Sulphur Low Aromatics SKO can ensure soldiers stay warm without compromising operational secrecy. It can keep soldiers warm in extreme cold environments such as Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh, and Sikkim, where temperatures are severe and heating is essential for survival and operational readiness.

LSLA SKO has extremely low sulphur (1 ppm) and low aromatic content, resulting in a high smoke point (30 mm). This makes it safer, cleaner, and more suitable for prolonged use in enclosed or high-risk military settings.

The Guwahati Refinery is the country's first public sector unit, inaugurated in January 1962 with a capacity of 0.75 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA).

The capacity was enhanced to 1.2 MMTPA in 2023. Currently, the crude requirement of the refinery is distributed between crude from Assam and imported varieties. Assam crude constitutes around 40 per cent of GR's input, while 60 per cent is imported, Kanti said.