Amid reports of drying up of petrol pumps in states like Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Karnataka, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas clarified on June 15 that the production of petrol and diesel in the country is more than enough to meet any demand surge. Is.
“It is a fact that at specific locations in some states, there has been a significant increase in the demand for petrol and diesel, with an increase of up to 50% during the first half of June 2022 as compared to the same period last year.” It said in an official statement.
The ministry said there has been a significant increase in the demand for petrol and diesel at specific locations in some states like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka. However, large quantities were being supplied by retail outlets belonging to private marketing companies in these states, especially ‘where distance from supply locations i.e. terminals and depots is long’, the statement said.
Explaining the reason for the increase in demand, the ministry said, “The increase in demand is due to seasonal spurt in demand due to agricultural activities, bulk buyers shifting their purchases to retail outlets and substantial reduction in sales. With sufficient volumes, PSUs have shifted to RO.”
The Petroleum Ministry added that as a result of the crackdown on illegal bio-diesel sales by the government, these volumes have also been added to RO diesel sales.
Read also: Why are some petrol pumps in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka running dry?
“The production of petrol and diesel in the country is more than enough to take care of any demand growth,” the government statement said, adding that the unprecedented growth has created some temporary logistics issues at the local level.
Elaborating the measures taken, the ministry said that oil companies have geared up to deal with these issues by increasing stock at depots and terminals.
Further, to meet the additional demand, the government assured that additional movement of tank trucks and lorries has been deployed to serve retail outlets, the working hours of depots and terminals have been extended – including night, and Provision of additional amount of fuel. Arrangements have been made for supply to the affected states.
Read also: Government asks oil PSUs to bring monetization plan
Earlier, reports cited a sudden surge in demand at PSU outlets after private fuel retailers cut operations to check the huge losses caused by public sector companies’ attempt to compete with heavily lowered rates. was given. Due to this some petrol pumps dried up in states like Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Karnataka.
PSU fuel retailers IndianOil, HPCL and BPCL have not raised petrol and diesel prices coupled with increase in crude oil (cost of raw material). They sell petrol at a loss of 14-18 per liter and on diesel 20-25 – A loss that private retailers Naira Energy, Geo-BP and Shell are unable to bear.