<article><p class="lead">LPG customers of Indian state-controlled refiner Bharat Petroleum (BPCL) will continue to receive the government subsidy on the fuel even after the company's privatisation.</p><p>BPCL has 73mn LPG consumers of the total 285mn households using the fuel. It also owns 4.7mn t/yr of LPG bottling capacity. The government does not pay the subsidy to the refiners but directly to consumers, so it does not matter if BPCL is a private-sector or state-controlled company, the country's oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan said, dispelling doubts about the continuation of the subsidy following the planned privatisation.</p><p>The government gives 12 subsidised 14.2kg LPG cylinders to a low-income household during a year with the subsidy deposited directly into the bank accounts of users.</p><p>India received <a href="https://direct.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/2161062">three bids to buy a 53pc controlling stake</a> in BPCL in a tender that closed last month. India first announced in March that it was looking to sell a controlling stake in BPCL through a tender, in the government's first big move towards opening up the economy through privatisation. Delhi has extended the bidding deadline five times, most recently in September.</p><p class="bylines">By S Dinakar</p></article>
