Tamil Nadu   

Oil companies go for automation of pumps

N. Ravi Kumar

Aimed at curbing adulteration, having greater control on outlets

— Photo: K. Pichumani

ENSURING QUALITY: A sensor installed in an underground tank of a petrol pump in Chennai.

CHENNAI: An end-to-end automation of the fuel delivery network is the next in the series of initiatives taken the State-owned oil marketing companies to curb fuel adulteration and to face the competition from the private sector.

A key facet of the technology-driven project, coming as it does after various measures dependent on manual intervention, is to introduce an electronic locking system for tanker-trucks transporting the fuel and at select petrol pumps.

Locations identified

The Indian Oil Corporation, the Bharat Petroleum Corporation and the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation have identified the locations and petrol pumps where the project will be implemented.

In the first stage, automation of some select outlets of IOC in Chennai has been completed, and the trial run is under way.

Apart from making it more difficult for the adulterators, the companies are confident of offering improved customer service and enjoying greater control over the retail outlets.

Claiming that 30 company-owned-company-operated outlets in the southern region were being covered, a BPCL official said the electronic locking system on tanker-trucks and underground tanks would be linked to a central computer system. It would help the company monitor sales and stocks.

Costly project

Describing the project as costly, given that an expenditure of Rs.30 lakh-Rs. 40 lakh was required for each outlet, he said the electronic locking system would be subsequently introduced in the delivery vehicles; it would replace the high-security tamper proof locks introduced some years ago.

The IOC is implementing the project in eight outlets in Tamil Nadu.

The automation covers various aspects of the outlets, including level gauges in underground tanks and those to check quality parameters of the fuel. Every time fuel is dispensed, a bill, giving details of the date, time, quantity of the purchase, the pump and the attendant who delivered the product, will be generated automatically.

Federation of All-India Petroleum Traders vice-president M. Kannan hoped that the project would bring back customers who shifted loyalty to the private companies.

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