NAMAKKAL: LPG tanker owners in Namakkal briefly halted operations on Monday over long-pending payments from Indian Oil Corporation Limited, which then resumed after the company released a portion of the dues and assured that the remaining amount would be cleared within two days.
Around 500 LPG tankers had temporarily stopped operating for IOCL earlier in the day, while continuing to ply for other oil companies, in protest against the prolonged delay in payments. IOCL supplies around 50 % of LPG to Tamil Nadu.
The issue, tanker owners said, has been persisting for months, with dues not being settled properly and payments, particularly over the last three months, remaining largely pending. Southern Region Bulk LPG Transport Owners’ Association president K Sundarrajan said the decision to suspend services was taken to highlight the seriousness of the issue.
“Following our announcement this Monday morning that we would not operate for IOCL, the company’s head office contacted us and promised to settle all pending payments within two days. They have released `10.35 crore to nearly 241 owners.
Based on that assurance, we have asked tanker owners to resume operations and have withdrawn the strike,” he said. He added that the total pending dues amount to nearly Rs 70 crore. According to the association, there has been a constant lag in payments.
Highlighting the impact on tanker owners, Sundarrajan said, “Though they have now promised assurance, pending payments put a huge toll on LPG owners. Most of the owners buy and operate these tankers on loans, and untimely payment of dues puts them under severe strain.”