Indian Oil launches e-GVs

Did you know that you can get one litre of fuel – petrol or diesel when you fill your tank with eGVs bought from Indian Oil Company’s website? The user gets a 0.4% discount, or Rs. 100 off on a purchase of Rs. 25,000 worth electronic Gift Voucher. A typical car user in megacities like Delhi NCR, Greater Mumbai and Bangalore consumes 100 litres of fuel every month for their daily commute to workplace and leisure. Cab drivers of Uber and Ola end up spending Rs. 1,000 per day worth fuel, so it could make a lot of sense for them. Fleet operators who run inter-city cabs benefit much more, as their daily travel is 200 kms or more, on an average. During peak seasons, it is a bit higher too.

Indian Oil Corporation had launched electronic Gift Vouchers during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021, but that is yet to take off in a big way. What is more interesting is there is a 0.4% discount on all purchases made above Rs. 500. While there is no payment gateway charge for UPI / Debit Card payments, there is a charge of Rs. 4-9 for internet banking (based on the bank), 0.75% for credit card transactions and 1.5% for wallet payments.

The gift voucher can be purchased for oneself or can be electronically gifted, to the receiver’s email id. The eGVs can be bought only online and are valid for a period of 365 days only. In its Terms & Conditions, IOCL states that the eGV must be purchased by persons above the age of 18.

The eGVs can be redeemed at select fuel outlets of Indian Oil across the country. On the point of sale (POS) machine at the outlet, the virtual sale option must be chosen, mobile number of the eGV holder is to be provided and the instantly generated OTP should be authenticated to complete the redemption. The eGV can be partially or fully redeemed, which is quite interesting while compared to the traditional eGVs from popular retail companies in India which encourage customers to use the eGV in full.

More details and purchase of the eGV can be done here. The company has been urging customers to pay through digital means such as debit and credit cards, UPI payments as well as through third party wallets. Managing daily cash collections at fuel stations is one of the biggest challenges of the managing partner, such as the Franchisee. In an aim to lead “Digital India” initiatives, Indian Oil’s eGVs, once popular could be a game changer for all the parties concerned – banks, fuel station operators and customers.

Legendary actor Amitabh Bachchan recently appeared in a TVC to promote the most premium fuel crafted by Indian Oil – XP100 which is predominantly encouraged for premium and luxury vehicles. The concept of high quality fuel for such vehicles, which cost Rs. 20 lakhs and above is yet to catch up in India. Global studies have corroborated evidences of higher vehicle efficiency, longer engine life and lower maintenance costs of the vehicle in the medium to long term.

There are over 34,000 fuels stations that trade with the brand name of “Indian Oil”. Bharath Petroleum (BPCL) and HPCL operat 18,000 and 19,000 outlets respectively, directly as well as through their franchisee partners. Shell operates over 350 fuel stations while Reliance energy operates around 1,500. New incumbent Nayara is scaling up fast and is expected to reach 1,000 fuel stations by 2024-25.

Return on capital Employed is among the highest in managing fuel stations in India, especially if the land is owned by the franchisee. On national and state highways, fuel stations make a lot more profits than in cities, due to lower cost of operation (including rentals) and staff. Better amenities such as clean rest rooms, a resting area for drivers and good quality food for passing by customers are add-on which draw scores of vehicles to fuel stations on highways.