Carmakers Flag E20 Fuel Contamination Concerns: Reuters

Major mass carmakers Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors and Mahindra separately raised concerns about chloride and moisture contamination in E20 petrol, Reuters reported, citing some internal communications between the industry executives. 

The findings come shortly after the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) withdrew a communication to the government seeking tighter controls on fuel contamination.

According to the data reviewed by Reuters, the three manufacturers collected more than 250 fuel samples from petrol stations across 21 states and Union Territories over a period of about a year. Elevated chloride levels were recorded in samples from 18 states, while some samples also showed moisture levels above government limits.

Among the states covered, samples from Rajasthan recorded chloride concentrations ranging from 6ppm to 570ppm, while Delhi/NCR recorded readings of 1.4ppm to 420ppm and Maharashtra 10ppm to 357ppm, the report said. The government limit is 3ppm.

The data also showed elevated moisture levels in some samples. Andhra Pradesh recorded readings of up to 13,000ppm and Uttar Pradesh up to 12,500ppm, compared with a permissible limit of 3,000ppm. High chloride concentrations can contribute to corrosion of fuel-system components, while excessive water contamination can affect fuel quality and, in severe cases, cause drivability problems.

The industry had previously linked concerns over such contamination to potential component failures, although the extent and causes of the issue remain under investigation.

Recently, SIAM withdrawal a letter sent to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas after media reports brought the issue into the public domain.

SIAM said the data mentioned in the report requireds further verification and that the communication had been intended for internal discussion and validation. The industry body has since indicated that it plans to undertake a more comprehensive scientific study.

The organisation has maintained that the earlier data was based on limited testing and was not sufficient to support definitive conclusions. This distinction is important as oil marketing companies have separately rejected claims of widespread contamination after conducting nationwide checks.

State owned Indian Oil, BPCL and HPCL said their testing of petrol samples found chloride levels within the prescribed limits. They also said inspections across around 90,000 fuel stations found no evidence of water ingress into underground storage tanks.

The Reuters reviewed communications indicate that some manufacturers had been discussing fuel quality internally before SIAM's public communication. A Maruti executive reportedly raised concerns over chloride levels and cited discussions with the Petroleum Ministry, while a Mahindra executive attributed some rapid vehicle failures to organic chloride contamination.

Mahindra has subsequently rejected conclusions drawn from the internal correspondence, describing them as baseless and incorrect and saying the industry data was limited and preliminary. The company has said it does not see an issue with E20.