LPG stock with oil cos dipping in Vidarbha cities

NAGPUR: There has been a dip in the LPG stock for cities in Vidarbha. The average stock being maintained with HPCL and BPCL is equivalent to less than a day's consumption. If the supplies in transit are counted, the stock is enough to last for up to two days, show the reporting to the govt by the PSUs.

IOCL is in a slightly better position with 1.4 days of current stock and gas to meet requirement for another three days is on the way.





The stock replenishment has been continuous, say officials adding that there is no chance of stock coming to nil at any point of time.

TOI has been monitoring the buffer stock maintained by the three PSU oil companies in Vidarbha for a month now. Initially, the supplies were enough to last up to 5 days depending on the company. There was a slight dip a week later, bringing the stock down to 4.5 days, including the stock in transit.

Amid supply constraints, the demand has not receded, with both dealers and companies attributing it to panic buying. The daily consumption for Nagpur alone stands at more than 30,000 cylinders for all the three companies clubbed. A number of smaller districts have less than a quarter of the consumption as compared to Nagpur, leading to a relatively better stock position, shows the data accessed by TOI.

Surprisingly, in Washim HPCL has stock to last for 11 days. The company's data shows a daily consumption of just 85 domestic cylinders in the district. In Gondia, the company has two days of buffer stock and another three days supplies are on the way. The position in Gondia is better compared to other smaller towns of the region.

Dealers, however, also complain about slow bookings from the companies' end. The system is not taking bookings beyond a certain limit. Even the bottling depots, from where the supplies are lifted, are starting operations late. Earlier, the work would start from early in the morning, however the depots are only opening close to noon. "This in turn has affected deliveries too," said Mahendra Gavai, a LPG dealer from Nagpur.

Bablu Tiwari of the LPG dealers association said bookings are low due to snags in the systems of oil companies. "Even the supplies to dealers have been reduced. However, the oil companies should clearly define the criterion for cutting the quota," said Tiwari.