Indian Oil looking for higher market share in global operations:Daga

Patna, May 3 (UNI)Indian Oil Mauritious Limited, the second wholly- owned subsidiary of the country's leading corporate house,is poised to capture over 20 per cent market share in terms of sale in the African island nation during this fiscal.

Speaking to UNI this evening after addressing his maiden press conference in the city on future plans of IOL, its new Director Marketing G C Daga said following the setting up of the second overseas subsidiary of IOL in Mauritious last year at a cost of 25 million dollars, the company had captured about 16 per cent market share in sales of both petroleum and lubricant products.

But as the demand for the quality products was fast growing in the highly populated country,the new company was expected to surpass the target of capturing at least 20 per cent market share in selling its products by the current financial year,Mr Daga said and hinted the company's plan to set up similar subsidiaries in some other countries in future.

He said IOL's first overseas venture began with the establishment of its first global subsidiary-the Indian Oil Sri Lanka Limited-at Trincomalee in Northern Sri Lanka about three to four years ago at a cost of Rs 25 crores.''Following overwhelming success of the Sri Lankan venture, having installed capacity of 18,000 kilo litres per annum,we had set up the second overseas plant in Mauritious with higher capacity before planning to set our foot in other countries'', Mr Daga informed.

About the future plans,he said IOL had decided to set up its first overseas oil bunker near Colombo port, expected by this year end,to store and ensure timely supply of its petrolum and lubricant products to its foreign customers based in South and South East Asia.

Regarding his investment plan for the current year in the domestic market, the IOL Director Marketing said they had earmarked Rs 1800 crores for domestic expansion programmes during the current fiscal which included the setting up of about 1600 new retail outlets and about 90 bulk terminals across the country.About 2,000 automated petrol pumps would also come up all over the country during this year as part of IOL's pan-India expansion programme, Mr Daga pointed out.

Earlier, referring to his plans for Bihar with an investment proposal of Rs 295 crores during 2007-08, Mr Daga said it included setting up of two new bottling plants in Muzaffarpur and Bhagalpur, besides establishing 105 new retail outlets and 75 new Kisan Seva Kendras and a bitumen drum filling plant at Barauni.

UNI