Shell plans 2,000 petrol stations

Royal Dutch-Shell has announced that it plans to set up 2,000 petrol pump stations in India with an investment of Rs 250 crore, in the first phase of its retail network.

Announcing this in Bangalore on Friday, Shell India chairman Vikram S Mehta said that Shell has returned after nearly three decades to fuel retailing in India.

"We have commissioned our first retail outlet in Bangalore last week. We are initially targeting South Indian states," Mehta said, but did not give the target dates for setting up all the 2,000 outlets.

The company is sourcing petrol and diesel from Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals, MRPL. Shell also plans to import and sell liquefied natural gas, LNG in India. Mehta said that the company will commence the import of LNG from Hazira, Gujarat, in the first quarter of 2005.

Shell is also setting up a 2.5 million tonne per annum LNG re-gassification terminal in Hazira, which is likely to be commissioned this month, Mehta said.

He said that the company was looking to source LNG from various places where it owns LNG equity, including Malaysia, Australia, Brunei and Oman.

While Mehta declined to give any details on the price at which the company will retail LNG, he said that the prices will be competitive with those offered by Petronet LNG from its Dahej terminal in Gujarat. Going forward, Mehta said, "We are looking at a range of customers both inside and outside Gujarat."