Mumbai: The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has dismissed separate complaints by Essar, Reliance and Shell, while approving a proposal by MIAL to establish an integrated Mumbai Aviation Fuel Farm Facility (MAFFF), in partnership with public sector oil companies.
At present, MAFFF is a whollyowned subsidiary of MIAL created to ensure supply of aviation turbine fuel to various airlines. As per the proposal, MIAL will form an equal joint venture with Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum, with each holding 25 per cent stake in MAFFF. Right now, the three oil PSUs independently supply fuel.
The joint venture is expected to cut operations costs and thereby benefit fliers. However, while Essar, Reliance and Shell who currently do not operate in Mumbai Airport, are drawing up plans to supply fuel, MIAL has begun work on a joint fuel farm within the airport complex itself with the help of IOC, HPCL and BPCL, using the existing pipeline network to their advantage. Due to this, Essar, Reliance and Shell have collectively viewed that the deal will be anti-competitive. The private oil companies alleged that the farm had infrastructure like a dedicated pipeline from Mahul to the airport already in place, while they would have to depend on tankers for the same, thus making the venture anticompetitive in nature.
04/10/14 Aditya Anand/Mumbai Mirror
To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline
At present, MAFFF is a whollyowned subsidiary of MIAL created to ensure supply of aviation turbine fuel to various airlines. As per the proposal, MIAL will form an equal joint venture with Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum, with each holding 25 per cent stake in MAFFF. Right now, the three oil PSUs independently supply fuel.
The joint venture is expected to cut operations costs and thereby benefit fliers. However, while Essar, Reliance and Shell who currently do not operate in Mumbai Airport, are drawing up plans to supply fuel, MIAL has begun work on a joint fuel farm within the airport complex itself with the help of IOC, HPCL and BPCL, using the existing pipeline network to their advantage. Due to this, Essar, Reliance and Shell have collectively viewed that the deal will be anti-competitive. The private oil companies alleged that the farm had infrastructure like a dedicated pipeline from Mahul to the airport already in place, while they would have to depend on tankers for the same, thus making the venture anticompetitive in nature.
04/10/14 Aditya Anand/Mumbai Mirror
