The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has rejected the claims of Karnataka Government that fuel sold at certain retail outlets in the state contains excessive ethanol. The Ministry clarified that E20 petrol supplied by public sector oil marketing companies (OMCs) across the country, including Karnataka, conforms to the prescribed quality standards. It noted that E20 petrol supplied by the three OMCs conforms to IS 17021, the Bureau of Indian Standards specification for ethanol-blended motor gasoline. The Ministry also said that 893 samples collected across 27 States and Union Territories, including 56 from Karnataka, meet the prescribed specifications. The Ministry added that all 56 samples tested in Karnataka conform to IS 17021 specifications, with ethanol content ranging from 19 to 20 per cent.
Earlier, the three oil marketing companies, Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, had clarified that the claims, as reported, were not supported by tests conducted in accordance with the prescribed statutory and technical procedures. In view of the concerns raised, the three OMCs have requested the Karnataka Government to share the complete sampling documentation, outlet-wise laboratory reports and details of the test methodology adopted for the reported findings.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas said that the OMCs maintain established quality assurance systems across their supply and distribution networks to ensure that blended fuel meets the applicable BIS specifications before reaching consumers.
