Daijiworld Media Network – Bengaluru
Bengaluru, Nov 7: Public sector oil marketing companies (OMCs) Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) have rejected the Karnataka government's claim that petrol sold at certain retail outlets in the state contains up to 31.2% ethanol, questioning the sampling and testing procedures adopted by the state government.
In a joint statement issued on Friday, November 6, the three companies maintained that the E20 petrol supplied by them across the country, including Karnataka, conforms to the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) specifications under IS 17021 for ethanol-blended motor gasoline. They said the allegations were not supported by tests conducted in accordance with prescribed statutory and technical procedures.
The clarification came after Karnataka's Department of Food, Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Legal Metrology claimed that petrol sold at certain fuel stations in the state contained between 26 and 31.2% ethanol, exceeding the prescribed E20 limit of 20%.
State Food and Civil Supplies minister Rizwan Arshad had said that the findings were based on petrol samples collected from Bengaluru, Kolar, Chikkaballapur, Bengaluru Rural, Ramanagara, Mangaluru and Tumakuru.
The highest ethanol concentration of 31.2% was reportedly found in a sample collected from an IOCL outlet. An HPCL Power petrol sample recorded 30.5%, while another HPCL sample had 27% and a BPCL Speed sample recorded 26.5%.
According to the state government's findings, 11 of the 14 samples tested contained ethanol above the prescribed 20% level. The samples were tested at the Shriram Research Institute in Bengaluru using gas chromatography. The state government had also raised concerns after the initial tests conducted by the oil companies' laboratories did not disclose the ethanol content.
Oil companies question sampling procedure
Rejecting the findings, the three oil companies raised objections to the sampling procedure followed during Karnataka's October 2026 inspection exercise. They said the samples were reportedly collected without the participation of representatives of the oil marketing companies.
The companies pointed out that the Motor Spirit and High Speed Diesel (Regulation of Supply, Distribution and Prevention of Malpractices) Order, 2005, issued under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955, read with the Marketing Discipline Guidelines (MDG) 2024, prescribes a specific procedure for collecting, retaining and testing fuel samples.
Under the prescribed procedure, six one-litre samples must be collected. Two samples are to be handed over to the dealer against acknowledgement, two retained by the oil company or the concerned department, and the remaining two sent to a laboratory specified under the Control Order or notified in the official gazette. The sample labels must be jointly signed, and test results must be communicated to the dealer and the oil company within the prescribed timeframe.
The companies said samples collected during Karnataka's September 2026 exercise were routed through the State Level Coordinator to designated oil company laboratories and tested according to the prescribed quality parameters. However, they alleged that the October exercise was conducted without the participation of their representatives.
They further stated that they had not received the corresponding retained samples, complete outlet-wise details or laboratory reports despite seeking the information through the State Level Coordinator.
According to the companies, the findings relied on certificates issued by a third-party laboratory rather than testing conducted at a laboratory specified under the Control Order. They also said the certificates did not contain complete technical details, including the prescribed testing methodology, necessary to independently verify the reported ethanol content.
Oil companies cite 893 samples
To counter the Karnataka government's findings, the three companies cited a nationwide fuel quality monitoring exercise conducted by the Oil Marketing Companies-Centre for High Technology Quality Coordination Cell.
According to their statement, 893 E20 petrol samples collected from depots and retail outlets across 27 states and Union Territories were tested. All the samples reportedly contained ethanol within the prescribed range of 19 to 21% under IS 17021.
Of these, 56 samples were collected from Karnataka. The companies said these samples recorded ethanol levels between 19 and 20%, with an average of 19.30%.
The nationwide exercise included 330 samples from IOCL, 280 from BPCL and 283 from HPCL. The testing was conducted at refinery and oil company quality-control laboratories using the water extraction method prescribed under IS 17021.
Dispute over density readings and consumer losses
The oil companies also questioned the density readings mentioned in the Karnataka laboratory reports. They said the reported density values ranged from 0.742 to 0.749 grams per cubic centimetre, whereas their own E20 samples recorded density values between 0.752 and 0.760 grams per cubic centimetre.
They argued that the difference warranted further examination, as ethanol has a higher density than petrol and a higher proportion of ethanol would ordinarily be expected to increase the density of the fuel blend.
The companies also disputed the Karnataka government's estimates of an annual consumer burden of around Rs 1.01 lac crore, comprising approximately Rs 62,000 crore in losses due to reduced fuel efficiency and Rs 39,000 crore in vehicle repair expenses.
They said the mileage-loss estimate appeared to be based on a blanket assumption of a 10% reduction across the entire vehicle population, which was not supported by technical studies. Citing the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, they said vehicles calibrated for E20 could experience mileage reductions of around one to two per cent, while certain other vehicles could see reductions of three to six per cent, depending on the vehicle category and calibration.
The companies further stated that more than 30 crore two-wheelers and four crore four-wheelers had been using E20 fuel for over three years and that there had been no reported widespread incidence of vehicle breakdowns attributable to E20 fuel quality.
Companies seek joint testing
The three oil marketing companies have urged the Karnataka government to share the complete sampling documentation, outlet-wise laboratory reports and details of the testing methodology adopted during the October exercise.
They have also sought access to the retained samples for independent testing at an authorised laboratory in the presence of representatives of both the state government and the oil companies. They said they were willing to cooperate with the state government in conducting fresh joint sampling and testing in accordance with the prescribed regulatory procedures.
The companies maintained that they had no commercial incentive to blend ethanol beyond the prescribed proportion, as procuring additional ethanol would increase their costs. They also said ethanol blending was carried out at refineries and depots through calibrated and automated proportioning systems.
Defending the national ethanol blending programme, the companies highlighted its economic and environmental benefits since the 2014-15 ethanol supply year, including foreign exchange savings of more than Rs 1.97 lac crore, substitution of around 316 lakh tonnes of crude oil, reduction of 952 lac tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions and payments exceeding Rs 1.66 lac crore to farmers.
During the 2025-26 ethanol supply year, which ended on October 31, the three companies procured 1,089 crore litres of ethanol and blended 1,134 crore litres against petrol sales of around 5,673 crore litres in pursuit of the national 20% blending target.
The companies said they were ready to cooperate with the Karnataka government and that appropriate action should be taken if any violation was established through the prescribed testing process.
The dispute has brought the quality of ethanol-blended petrol, testing procedures and their possible impact on vehicles into focus, with the state government and oil marketing companies presenting differing findings.