Oil firms' threat makes Air India passengers worried
AI has been negotiating with the OMCs to supply Aviation Turbine Fuel despite pending dues worth Rs 5,000 crore.
New Delhi: Air Inda suffered a scare when oil marketing companies announced that they would suspend fuel supply to the airline’s domestic flights from Monday evening at airports including in the port city.
This created apprehensions among the passengers that they may not be able to fly.
AI has been negotiating with the OMCs to supply Aviation Turbine Fuel despite pending dues worth Rs 5,000 crore. The airline has been paying the oil firms '20 crore a day.
In September, the companies asked debt-laden Air India to clear its dues towards daily billing amid rising oil prices. The airlines purchases Rs 600 crore of jet fuel from Indian Oil Corp, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum Ltd per month on average.
According to an Indian Oil Corp official, a notice has been sent to Air India asking it to clear the dues. A senior Air India official said such notices are “not unusual” and that the airline paid Rs 100 crore on Monday to the OMCs.
Following this, OMCs began fuelling AI aircraft. An official said that ATF supply remained uninterrupted. Passengers need not worry as the matter has been resolved, an officer said.