State-run Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) plans capital expenditure of Rs 25,000 crore for the financial year 2026-27 (FY27), focused primarily on ongoing expansion projects, against spending of Rs 20,400 crore in the previous year, the company’s management told Business Standard in an interview.
BPCL refrained from commenting on expectations of a further increase in retail prices of petrol and diesel but said the recent Rs 4-per-litre price hike has somewhat helped ease the financial burden on the company. Oil marketing companies (OMCs) have raised retail fuel prices by roughly Rs 4 per litre in the last five days due to mounting losses amid soaring crude oil prices.
“When times are so uncertain, every day there is a significant movement in crude oil prices, it’s not right to say what the exact number (for under-recovery) is right now. The Rs 4 hike has given us some respite. In the past, we have seen this type of tough situation with the Russia-Ukraine war, but in the long run we made it up. That is the reason there is no anxiety in the company. Our primary objective is to meet public requirements,” said Chairman and Managing Director Sanjay Khanna.
BPCL has delayed the regular maintenance shutdown of its refineries to September from April to meet the country’s fuel demand, said Khanna. BPCL operates three refineries in Mumbai, Kochi (Kerala), and Bina (Madhya Pradesh), and is also working on building a greenfield refinery in Andhra Pradesh. BPCL expects to complete the detailed feasibility report (DFR) of the greenfield refinery by June to finalise the investment requirement of the project, said Khanna.
BPCL announced its fourth-quarter results on Tuesday. The company reported a 28 per cent year-on-year (YoY) increase in consolidated net profit at Rs 5,624 crore in Q4 of FY26. Revenue from operations rose 6.3 per cent YoY to Rs 1.35 trillion in the quarter.
Sequentially, BPCL’s net profit fell 21.7 per cent in Q4. The drop in profits was on account of foreign exchange losses and impairment losses associated with BPCL’s investment in a Brazil-based oil and gas project.
As of March 31, BPCL’s under-recovery on sale of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders stood at Rs 12,318.52 crore, it said in an exchange filing. In FY26, the company received five equal instalments from the government as compensation for LPG under-recovery, aggregating to Rs 3,164.15 crore.
“The company maintained operational stability across its refining and marketing businesses during the quarter, ensuring uninterrupted fuel supplies while strengthening its nationwide distribution network amid a rapidly evolving global energy environment,” BPCL said in a press release.
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