E20 Petrol Undergoes Nationwide Quality Checks

Public-sector oil marketing companies Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) have said that additional nationwide checks found no evidence of excessive moisture or chloride levels in E20 petrol, which contains 20% ethanol. The companies said fuel quality was found to be better than the prescribed standards. The statement came after the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) wrote to the Petroleum Ministry raising concerns over fuel quality, before subsequently withdrawing the letter. The oil companies said strict chloride limits have been prescribed for ethanol and regular checks are being carried out at refineries, distilleries, depots, terminals and retail outlets.

The companies said moisture levels were checked 8 to 12 times a day at underground tanks across around 90,000 petrol stations using mobile testing laboratories and independent laboratories, with no significant deviations detected. More than 100 petrol samples collected from refineries showed chloride levels of 1 ppm or below, while ethanol samples from 80 distilleries recorded chloride levels below 3 ppm. More than 160 E20 samples collected from retail outlets showed chloride levels between 0 and 3 ppm. Supply was temporarily stopped at two locations where higher chloride levels were detected and will resume only after corrective measures are completed. Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said that tests were conducted at around 1.07 lakh outlets and issues were found at only four locations, adding that isolated contamination does not mean the entire fuel distribution system is defective.