OMCs Rule Out Claims Of 500 ppm Chloride And Moisture Presence In E20 Petrol

State-owned oil marketing companies (OMCs) on Friday said extensive nationwide testing has found no evidence to support allegations of excessive chloride or moisture contamination in E20 petrol, asserting that fuel supplied through their network continues to meet prescribed quality standards.

The clarification follows recent reports raising concerns over the presence of high chloride levels and moisture in ethanol blended petrol.

In a joint statement, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) said additional testing was carried out across the entire fuel supply chain and did not validate claims of contamination.

"Contrary to certain assertions being made, there is no evidence of any alarm on account of fuel contamination validated by extensive and scientifically designed tests," the companies said in the statement.

Testing Across The Supply Chain

According to the OMCs, more than 100 petrol samples collected from refineries recorded chloride levels of 1 part per million (ppm) or lower.

A joint task force of OMCs and the Centre for High Technology (CHT) also tested ethanol sourced from 80 distilleries over the past 10 days, with all samples showing chloride levels below 3 ppm.

The companies further said over 80 samples collected from fuel depots and terminals across the country also contained chloride levels below 3 ppm, indicating that quality standards were maintained during storage and transportation.

At the retail level, the OMCs said more than 160 E20 samples analysed in recent days recorded chloride concentrations between 0 and 3 ppm, rejecting claims that levels had reached several hundred ppm.

Enhanced Monitoring At Retail Outlets

The companies said quality surveillance has been strengthened through water-ingress and density checks conducted eight to 12 times a day at fuel stations, deployment of mobile fuel testing laboratories and independent validation of results through accredited fuel laboratories.

They added that around 90,000 retail outlets have begun mandatory inspections of underground storage tanks, with no water ingress detected so far.

The monitoring programme identified a handful of isolated cases with elevated chloride levels, where fuel supplies were immediately suspended until the issue was investigated and corrective measures were implemented.

Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, while speaking at a CII event earlier in the day, dismissed concerns over E20 fuel quality, saying attempts were being made to "create some controversy" around India's ethanol blending programme

"They formed crack teams... What did they find? They found four cases out of 107,000 petrol pumps... So obviously, someone out there is trying to place some things out of context," Puri said, as per PTI.

The remarks come amid an ongoing controversy regarding the usage of ethanol blended fuel and its damage on the vehicles. Consumers have been continuously reporting vehicle and performance damages throughout the country. While the government maintains that the ethanol blending programme has undergone extensive tests, and has ruled out any major impact on old vehicles, it has also admitted in July that the E20 fuel affects the mileage of the vehicle by 5-6%.