OMCs Force Petroleum Traders to Sell Power Petrol

Vijayawada: The state-owned oil marketing companies --BPCL, HPCL and IOCL -- are forcing petroleum traders to sell premium petrol, causing more financial burden to the motorists in Andhra Pradesh.

Premium petrol costs nearly `10 more than normal petrol per litre.

Petroleum traders say OMCs are attempting to boost the sale of premium petroleum products like XP95, Power petrol and XtraGreen, and are mounting pressure upon them. The companies are

even linking release of fuel stocks to the sale of power petrol. At times, the indents for supply of fuels are being kept pending for a long time by the OMCs.

The traders say that they are even being forced to dupe the motorists by filling up the fuel tanks of their vehicles with power petrol and charging them accordingly even though the motorists do not seek this.

At present, a litre of petrol costs `117.8 here and power petrol costs `10 more per litre, which comes to `127.8.

Though the OMCs claim that power petrol gives more mileage, smooth ride/drive and other benefits, motorists opt for normal petrol.

“Some field staff of OMCs are forcing us to dupe some gullible customers by selling power petrol,” a petroleum trader said.

Petrol cost has already been revised four times since the beginning of the US-Iran war, resulting in a total hike of `7.35 per litre.

Petroleum traders suggested to the OMCs to bring about the multiple benefits in usage of power petrol to the motorists on various platforms including at fuel stations and also at bike/car showrooms initially, so as to avoid protests.

The AP federation of petroleum traders has written to the OMCs seeking their intervention to ensure that their field staff do not mount pressure on traders to promote power petrol sale and

link supply of fuel stocks to it.