The Karnataka government has alleged that petrol supplied by major oil marketing companies in the state contained ethanol well above the prescribed 20% limit, with laboratory tests recording concentrations as high as 31.2% in samples collected across several districts. The state has sought action against companies found supplying fuel with excess ethanol and called for greater disclosure to consumers.
Food, civil supplies, consumer affairs and legal metrology minister Rizwan Arshad said samples were collected from Bengaluru, Kolar, Chikkaballapura, Bengaluru Rural, Ramanagara, Mangaluru and Tumakuru. The samples were tested at the Bengaluru-based Shriram Research Institute, which the government described as accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories and ISO-certified.
According to the test results cited by the state government and reported by news agency PTI, Indian Oil Corporation Limited petrol recorded ethanol content of 31.2%, while a Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited sample recorded 30.5%. Other samples showed 27% in HPCL petrol, 26.5% in BPCL Speed, 26.1% in Nayara petrol and 25.5% in Shell petrol.
The government said some samples from Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, HPCL and IOCL also recorded ethanol levels above 20%, while other samples ranged from 13.5% to 20.6%. The prescribed limit referred to by the state is E20, or petrol blended with up to 20% ethanol.
The Karnataka government also alleged that in-house laboratory reports from IOCL and BPCL did not disclose ethanol content, despite the parameter being prescribed for testing. The omission, according to a government release quoted by PTI, raised questions about the transparency of oil marketing companies and the information available to consumers at fuel stations.
The dispute has a direct bearing on vehicle users because the state government claimed that excess ethanol blending could reduce mileage and damage components including fuel pumps, injectors, filters, hoses and seals. It said 99% of India’s 35 crore vehicles were not designed to operate on blends above E20, though the report did not provide a vehicle-wise breakdown or independent confirmation of the claimed damage.
The state has sought action against oil marketing companies found supplying fuel with ethanol content above the prescribed limit. It has also called for mandatory display of ethanol blend percentages at petrol pumps, a nationwide system offering different fuel blends and compensation for consumers whose vehicles suffer verified damage. Among its demands is an E20 spoilage fund to address such claims.
The Karnataka government’s demands now place fuel testing, disclosure standards and consumer compensation at the centre of the issue. The supplied report does not specify the action taken by the oil marketing companies or the next regulatory step following the state laboratory findings.
