Govt plans to ease petrol pump licensing norms amid energy security push

The government is considering further easing the norms for setting up petrol pumps in the world's fastest-growing fuel market, in light of the evolving energy security paradigm and commitment to decarbonisation, according to an official order.

The government had in 2019 relaxed the norms for setting up petrol pumps, opening the door for non-oil companies to enter the fuel retailing business.

At that time, companies with a net worth of Rs 250 crore were permitted to sell petrol and diesel, provided they committed to setting up infrastructure for at least one new-generation alternative fuel, such as CNG, LNG, biofuels, or EV charging, within three years of beginning their operations.

For companies wanting to sell petrol and diesel to retail and bulk consumers, the networth criteria was set at Rs 500 crore.

The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has now constituted an expert committee to review the 2019 guidelines for granting authorisation to market transportation fuels.

The expert committee will "assess the effectiveness of the framework envisaged in Resolution dated November 8, 2019, in ensuring energy security and market efficiency; align the policy framework with national commitment towards decarbonisation, electrical mobility and promotion of alternative fuel; and address issues in implementation of existing guidelines," the order said.

The committee is headed by Sukhmal Jain, former director (marketing) of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL). Other members of the four-member committee are Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) Director General P Manoj Kumar, FIPI member PS Ravi and Arun Kumar, Director (Marketing) in the ministry.

An August 6 notice of the ministry sought stakeholder/general public comments/suggestions on the matter within 14 days.

Prior to the 2019 change, to obtain a fuel retailing license in India, a company had to invest or commit to invest Rs 2,000 crore in either hydrocarbon exploration and production, refining, pipelines or liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals.

This norm was relaxed in 2019. That year, the government allowed any entity with a net worth of Rs 250 crore to get a licence to retail petrol and diesel to either bulk or retail consumers. For those seeking authorisation for both retail and bulk, the minimum networth was set at Rs 500 crore at the time of application.

For retail authorisation, the entities are required to set up at least 100 retail outlets. Also, retailers are required to establish 5 per cent of the total outlets in rural areas within five years.

Global energy giants have been eyeing the Indian fuel market for a long time.

French energy giant TotalEnergies, in partnership with Adani Group, had in November 2018 applied for a licence to retail petrol and diesel through 1,500 outlets. BP too has formed a partnership with Reliance Industries to set up petrol pumps.

While oil trader Trafigura's downstream arm, Puma Energy, had applied for a license, Saudi Arabia's Aramco has been in talks to enter the sector.

State-owned oil marketing companies Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) currently own most of the 97,804 petrol pumps in the country. Reliance Industries, Nayara Energy (formerly Essar Oil), and Royal Dutch Shell are the private players in the market, but with limited presence.

The joint venture of Reliance, which operates the world's largest oil refining complex, and BP has 1,991 outlets. Nayara has 6,763 pumps, while Shell has just 355. Currently, IOC is the market leader with 40,666 petrol pumps in the country, followed by BPCL with 23,959 outlets, and HPL with 23,901 fuel stations.