IOC Project SPRINT Boosts Retail Dominance

New Delhi, Aug 31 (PTI) Indian Oil Corporation's (IOC) transformative project SPRINT has started to show results with improved operational performance at refineries and the company is regaining leadership position in fuel retail expansion, Chairman Arvindar Singh Sahney said.

India's largest oil firm in April unveiled Project SPRINT that looks to make the firm future-ready by fashioning businesses to meet changing global energy landscape and stay relevant and profitable.

SPRINT stands for strengthening core businesses of oil refining, petrochemicals and fuel marketing, propel cost optimisation to increase profitability, reinforce customer centricity, integrate technology and innovation, nurture leadership and talent, and be transition-ready.

IOC called SPRINT a transformation project that will keep the firm rooted in its core strengths, while at the same time preparing for an eventual transition away from fossil fuels.

"To sustain leadership in a changing energy landscape, the company must evolve with speed and agility -- and with this vision, we launched Project SPRINT at the beginning of this fiscal year," he said. "SPRINT is our transformation framework to sharpen competitiveness and create long-term value."

Addressing the company's annual shareholder meeting, he said at the heart of SPRINT are the 3Cs -- core, cost, customer -- and 3Ts: technology, talent, transition.

"The results are already visible. Based on our internal assessments, one of our refineries is on track to become the first PSU refinery in India to achieve a Quartile-1 global ranking in the prestigious Solomon Benchmarking Index, with official results expected later this year," he said.

The Solomon Index is a globally recognised benchmarking tool primarily used in the refining and petrochemical industries to measure and compare efficiency on different parameters.

"In retail, nearly half of all new PSU OMC outlets commissioned since April 2025 have been IOC's, strengthening our footprint in urban centres and along highways," he said. "Non-fuel revenues at our outlets grew 49 per cent year-on-year in the first four months of this financial year -- a clear marker of rising customer trust and enhanced value."

IOC traditionally was a market leader in fuel retailing, controlling roughly half of the market. But in recent years, it lost out on marketing to fellow public sector companies as well as private sector firms due to defused focus.

This resulted in rivals gaining market share. Since Sahney took over, IOC has renewed focus on recapturing the market share and is back to commanding about 42 per cent of the market share of all petroleum products sold in the country.

It has increased its share in bulk diesel by 10 percentage points, wrestling ground from Reliance Industries and Rosneft-backed Nayara Energy after reversing margin-first playbook in favour of market dominance.

"On the operational front, your company's cost-optimisation initiatives across business segments are progressing well, ensuring efficiency, competitiveness, and sustained profitability," he said.

To strengthen its core business, IOC is scaling capacity to refine crude oil into fuels like petrol and diesel from the present 80.75 million tonnes per annum to 98.4 million tonnes by 2028, with major expansions at Panipat, Gujarat, and Barauni, he said.

To move this energy swiftly and sustainably, IOC is expanding its pipeline network -- the country's most extensive -- to 22,000 km with 21 projects under execution. These include pipeline extensions and new storage facilities in Nepal.

Alongside refining and pipelines, IOC is targeting petrochemicals as the next growth engine, expanding capacity from the current 4.3 million tonnes per annum to over 13 million tonnes capacity by 2030, with a sharp focus on specialty chemicals to reduce import dependence and enhance margins.

The firm will continue to expand its 40,000-plus fuel retailing network, adding new-age sources such as EV chargers, battery-swapping stations and CNG and LNG dispensing outlets.

Alongside core business, IOC is investing Rs 2.5 lakh crore in energy transition that will help it achieve net-zero operational emissions by 2046, he said, adding that the firm is investing in green hydrogen production, Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), and expanding renewable electricity portfolio from 1 GW to 18 GW within three years.

"Looking ahead, your company has committed around Rs 1.66 lakh crore over the next five years, with a sharp focus on petrochemicals, natural gas, and renewable energy - balancing India's rising auto-fuel demand with the global energy transition," he said.

IOC owns and operates 10 oil refineries with a combined capacity of 80.8 million tonnes, making up for almost a third of India's 256.8 million tonnes of refining capacity.

It also owns 40,831 petrol pumps out of 98,261 pumps in the country. Besides, it owns close to half of the nation's 25,573 LPG distributors. It runs 130 out of 310 aviation fuel stations in the country.