Amid reports raising concerns over moisture and chloride contamination in ethanol-blended petrol (E20), Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) on Friday said extensive nationwide testing has confirmed that fuel quality remains well within the prescribed limits across the supply chain.
According to press note, issued by petroleum ministry, the showed no evidence of widespread fuel contamination and there was "no cause for alarm." The oil Markeitng companies said intensive random sampling was carried out at refineries, distilleries, depots, terminals, tank trucks and retail outlets following media reports.
The findings, they said, According to the OMCs, chloride levels in petrol produced at refineries were consistently at or below 1 ppm. More than 100 petrol samples tested at refineries met the prescribed standards. Ethanol supplied by distilleries also recorded chloride levels significantly below the permissible limit, with a joint task force of OMCs and the Centre for High Technology (CHT) testing samples from 80 distilleries over the past 10 days. All samples contained less than 3 ppm of chloride.
The companies said over 80 E20 samples collected from depots and terminals across the country also recorded chloride levels below 3 ppm. At the retail level, over 1,000 samples were collected under an intensified monitoring programme. Of the 160 test reports analysed so far, chloride levels ranged between 0 and 3 ppm, contrary to claims of contamination running into several hundred ppm.
Only four isolated cases of elevated chloride levels were detected during the exercise. Supplies from those outlets were immediately suspended, followed by a root-cause analysis and corrective measures before operations resumed. To further strengthen quality surveillance, OMCs said underground fuel storage tanks at nearly 90,000 retail outlets are being inspected 8-12 times a day for water ingress. No water contamination has been detected so far.
The companies reiterated that E20 petrol supplied through their network complies with prescribed quality specifications and urged consumers to continue using the fuel with confidence.
