- India's oil marketing firms risk wiping out FY26 profits in one quarter due to current crude prices
- Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri highlighted the threat amid the Middle East energy crisis
- Q1 FY27 losses for Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum, and Hindustan Petroleum could reach Rs 1.2 lakh crore
India's oil marketing companies could be runnin the risk of seeing their entire FY26 profit after tax getting wiped out simply through a single quarter of losses at current crude price levels, according to Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.
Puri's warning comes against the backdrop of global energy crisis emanating from the war in the Middle East, with crude now actively trading over the $100 a barrel limit. The elevated levels are seemingly becoming a pain point for state-run oil marketing companies, even prompting PM Narendra Modi to appeal to citizens about conserving fuel.
Breaking down the numbers
The numbers do indeed back Puri's damning warning about oil marketing companies. Energy shocks triggered by the US-Iran war have put Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum on course for a combined loss of Rs 1.2 lakh crore in Q1 FY27 alone.
This far exceeds earlier Street estimates of Rs 27,000 crore per month, or roughly Rs 81,000 crore per quarter, which were premised on crude staying around $120 per barrel. Notably, even with crude mostly trading below $115 per barrel, the actual loss trajectory has exceeded those projections.
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