Reliance eyes to access to PSU oil companies’ ATF pipeline

Reliance Industries wants access to the storage of government petroleum companies. It wants access to pipelines and storage of government oil companies. Reliance Industries wants access to public sector pipelines and storage.

Reliance Industries Ltd wants access to pipelines and storage of state-owned oil companies. Reliance wants to acquire a larger share of the fuel business at some of the busiest airports in Asia with access to these storages. Reliance accounts for 25 percent of the country’s total aircraft fuel (ATF) production.

Reliance wants access to the pipeline to Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad airports besides storage depots outside the Delhi airport. Currently, Reliance’s share is much lower than the ATF supply made by public sector companies. New Delhi: Oil sector regulator PNGRB has sought comments on the draft regulations for supply of ATF by pipeline to all existing and future airports.

The regulator has said that all suppliers should have access to these pipelines for supply to increase competition and reduce fuel costs. Reliance has made this suggestion on the draft of PNGRB. Though the country’s fuel market is free, ATF at busy airports in the country is supplied for decades through pipelines built by public sector oil companies Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL).

Reliance, which has been seeking access to the pipeline supplying ATF, especially at Mumbai airports, for over a decade, has said the ambit of the pipeline for the airline should include pump stations up to storage facilities and off-site terminal facilities, as these are critical part of the ATF supply chain. Reliance says that this will give it a competitive market boost to the supply and distribution of ATF for ‘on-site’ storage facilities at the airport. Of the 17.1 million tonnes of ATF produced by public and private sector refineries, 8.2 million tonnes is consumed domestically and the rest is exported.

Reliance’s two refineries in Jamnagar produce about 5 million tonnes, a large part of which is exported. The number of air travellers in the country is increasing rapidly, which is also increasing the demand for ATF. ATF demand grew by 11.8 per cent in the year ended March 31, 2024.