Mangalore Refinery to open fuel retail outlets

State-run Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd. (MRPL), a subsidiary of Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC), said it may revive its fuel retailing plan, which now seems viable with the deregulation of petrol prices in India. In 2006, the company received permission to open 500 outlets but opened only three. It formed a joint venture with Ashok Leyland for retailing but put off plans after a spike in global crude prices and the government’s announcement that it would not compensate the company for selling fuel below cost. Now the joint venture, called Mangalam Retail Services Ltd., wants to set up retail outlets along national and state highways in south India. (January 16, 2012)