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Even as Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) plans to open all its 1,400 odd petrol pumps in India by the end of this fiscal, its dealers in Uttar Pradesh are seeking clarity of terms before reopening their outlets.
In 2008, about 110 Reliance fuel outlets comprising both company and franchisee owned in UP, were closed down due to losses accrued by selling fuel above the subsidised fuel of public sector oil marketing companies in the erstwhile control era.
At that time, the petrol and diesel at Reliance outlets were costlier by almost Rs 10 and Rs 6 respectively vis-à-vis public sector retailers such as Indian Oil Corporation and Bharat Petroleum.
Following the closure, some dealers in UP had exited the business by disposing off their property to RIL due to uncertainty of revival and to unlock their investment.
However, with the decontrol of petrol and diesel prices, the private sector oil companies, including RIL, have started the process of reopening their outlets.
In Eastern UP, about a dozen Reliance fuel outlets have already been opened.
However, a section of the defunct outlet dealers are not only skeptical about the future prospects, but have expressed dismay over the "lack of clarity" from RIL over its action plan.
"Our investment in the dealership has been stuck for almost 7 years now, as the 20 lease agreement restrains me to seek business avenues elsewhere," a Reliance fuel retailer near Lucknow rued talking to Business Standard on condition of anonymity.
He further claimed the company had also been both short and slow in communicating to its dealers.
Another dealer claimed he was awaiting a "detailed plan" about the price, commission and guarantee terms before starting the outlet again.
"I want to be sure about the future course of action if there was another closure in future like the one in 2008, which has already caused me financial losses," he underlined.
He claimed only those outlets, which were located in prime locations and busy highways were getting opened at the moment.
Yet another dealer observed that the company was far from being "systematic" in its process of reopening its outlets and that most dealers expected more clarity and transparency in the process.
Meanwhile, a dealer, who has reopened his outlet, claimed most of the "irritants" related to supplies and logistics had been resolved by the company.
"There were some initial hiccups regarding the supply and logistics, but now there is no shortage of the fuel," he added. His outlet is getting fuel supply from the RIL depot in Kanpur Dehat district.
Meanwhile, an email query to RIL remained unanswered despite till the time of filing this report.
