Loss from Barauni import hits Rs 218 million

REPUBLICA
KATHMANDU, Oct 3: Employees of Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) have strongly objected to the NOC management´s decision to resume imports of petroleum products from Barauni despite huge losses incurred by the state-owned petroleum monopolist.

Internal investigations by employees showed that NOC suffered a loss of Rs 218.2 million a year in the imports from Barauni due to leakage, high temperature and higher transportation cost when compared to other alternative routes.

NOC had decided to close fuel import from Barauni after its high-level technical probe team confirmed wrong calibration in tankers. Due to the faulty calibration, the fuel received by the NOC was incommensurate with the payments it had made to the Indian supplier.

The corporation had withdrawn the decision on September 27, following a string of protests by petrol tanker operators.

Devi Neupane, president of NOC employee union, said the board meeting of NOC held this week was marred by a heated exchange of debates between employees´ representatives and NOC management with the former protesting the latter´s decision.

Referring to the on-the-spot report released by NOC employees earlier on May 2010, Neupane said, NOC suffered a loss of Rs 218.2 million during last fiscal year while importing petroleum products from Barauni.

“We have seriously raised the issue of such huge loss and demanded an action against the guilty. We won´t allow NOC to continue the imports given the huge loss of millions of rupees,” said Neupane, who is also the NOC board member.

However, during the meeting, Digambar Jha, managing director of NOC, said he wouldn´t stop importing petroleum products from Barauni as demanded by the employees.

“As a managing director of NOC, I have the final authority to decide on whether or not to resume the imports from Barauni refinery,” Neupane quoted Jha as saying.

Employees also object to the proposal by Commerce Secretary and Chairman of NOC Purushottam Ojha to continue the imports by the end of Tihar festival.

“If NOC keeps importing petroleum products during Dashain and Tihar festivals from Barauni, the losses incurred during the period have to be borne by NOC´s top management,” Neupane warned.

Bowing down to the pressure of tanker operators, NOC on Monday agreed to resume the imports from Barauni. But the federation had threatened to bring import and distribution of fuel to a grinding halt if the corporation did not rollback its decision to stop imports from Barauni refinery.

The tanker operators had flayed the decision, arguing that it had pushed them out of the business and their investment at risk.