IOCL vs BPCL vs HPCL - What Do They Have in Common

IOCL vs. BPCL vs. HPCL comparison includes three Indian downstream companies involved in the selling of crude oil products, including the most commonly used petrol and diesel. They are also the only downstream companies to have been listed in the stock markets and are among Maharatna PSUs, whose major controlling stake lies with the GOI or Government of India.

Hence, comparing IOCL vs. BPCL vs. HPCL becomes easier since they all operate in the same domain. In this blog, we will look at their similarities in terms of product offerings, market presence, government ownership, and impact on India's energy sector.

• IOCL is the biggest public sector oil company in terms of the size and volume of crude oil trade it handles.
• IOCL, HPCL, and BPCL are important drivers of economic growth in India and have a large network of pumps and gas stations across the Indian subcontinent.
• All three companies—IOCL, BPCL, and HPCL—have nearly identical product portfolios, including natural gas, petrol, diesel, lubricants, and petrochemicals

When it comes to the IOCL vs. BPCL vs. HPCL debate, one common factor is that the Central Government has a majority stake (> 50%) in all three. These three oil majors come under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. HPCL has the highest number of foreign portfolio investor stake, while in the case of BPCL, the largest holdings lie with mutual fund houses. IOCL has attracted the largest amount of public investments and has the largest market share among the three.

Since IOCL vs. BPCL vs. HPCL comparison includes companies belonging to the same industry, there is very little differentiation between the three in terms of product portfolio:

The number of petrol pumps in India has grown by almost 40% over the last five years. IOCL operates the highest number of pumps, 36,700, which accounts for nearly 42% of the total, while BPCL and HPCL operate almost the same number of pumps—21,300.

BPCL also plans to increase its fuel outlets by almost 14,273 pumps, or nearly two-thirds, to further its share in the growing domestic fuel market.

Let us look at some of the numbers for the three corporations for the fiscal year 2022 - 2023:

Refinery throughput refers to the total amount of crude oil used as input to produce petrochemical products. Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) had the highest refinery throughput at 72.408 million tonnes in FY 2022-23, followed by Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) at 38.53 million tonnes and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) at 19.09 million tonnes.

When it comes to revenue from operations, Indian Oil Corporation reported the highest revenue from operations at Rs. 9,34,953 crores in FY 2022-23, followed by Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited at Rs. 532,104 crores and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited at Rs. 464,683.79 crores.

IOCL reported the highest gross refining margin (GRM) at US$19.52 per barrel in FY 2022-23, followed by BPCL at US$12.64 per barrel and HPCL at US$12.09 per barrel.

1. Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL)

IOCL is the biggest Government-owned oil company in India. It is involved in exploring, extracting, refining, and producing petrochemicals, natural gas, and crude oil. It also transports and markets its products.

The company operates 11 out of the 23 refineries in India and also functions overseas in countries like Sri Lanka, Mauritius, and the Middle East through different subsidiary companies.

2. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL)

Established in 1952, BPCL is also a Government-controlled organisation. It was originally named Rangoon Oil and Exploration Company by the Britishers in 1891 for the exploration of oil in northeast India.

It operates two refineries in India, in Mumbai and Kochi, and has subsidiaries, including Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL), which distributes gas in New Delhi. Its subsidiary, Petronet LNG, imports and distributes oil across the country.

3. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL)

HPCL is a subsidiary of ONGC, or Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, another government-owned entity. HPCL operates refineries in Visakhapatnam and Mumbai. It is also involved in the manufacturing of lubricants, producing nearly 40% of the country’s total lubricant demand. HPCL also owns stakes in Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) and is looking to set up a refinery in Barmer, Rajasthan.