An ambitious, nationwide retail outlet network expansion programme of the three State-owned oil marketing companies has progressed to the next, crucial stage of dealer selection in Telangana.
The process of online draw of lots was initiated a few days ago, a senior official of Indian Oil Corporation said.
While draw of lots is one of modes of selection, the other is through a bidding process.
3,500 locations
In December, IOC, Bharat Petroleum Corporation and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, had invited applications for appointment of dealers for petrol pumps proposed at 3,500 locations across the State.
Such a major expansion – between them the companies have nearly 2,500 retail outlets in Telangana now – came on the back of an emphasis to be close to customers, tapping the potential by covering more areas, especially rural, and be ready with the facility when the demand picks up. The last date for submission of applications got over around mid-January.
Sources in the three companies said while the response was good with quite a few locations getting multiple applications, there were also locations that did not get any.
The lack of response is, however, not something completely unexpected.
Evaluation
Even locations, for which applicant selection is over, nothing is certain until the entire process is completed. Post selection and payment of a part of the security deposit by the applicant, the process involves an evaluation of the land offered the applicant and document verification by the respective companies.
Thereafter, the company issues a Letter of Intent, based on which the applicant has to seek approvals from different agencies, from the District administration, PESO (Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation) and where required from NHAI. It is not uncommon for a certain number of the proposed locations to go abegging inspite of the locations identified by the companies for setting up retails outlets based on certain commercial/minimum volume considerations.
Approvals
The time frame for getting the approvals, an official said, could vary from 45 days to more than a year too. The first Indian Oil Corporation petrol pump in this round, he added, could become operational as early as by June considering that 309 of the nearly 1500 locations, for which the company had advertised, received one application each.
“There won’t be any draw for these locations and the applicant is preliminary selected. The locations for which draw and bidding has to be done is 754 where multiple applications have been submitted,” he added.
One application cases
HPCL had advertised for 1,168 outlets and BPCL 885. The number of locations advertised by BPCL and HPCL that got one application in response each is estimated to be around 400.
In such cases, the applicant is informed by the company while for many other locations where bidding or draw of lots had to be conducted, the schedule for undertaking the same had been announced.
