From fuel to hydration: Indian Oil to sell own-brand bottled water at 43,000 petrol pumps

State-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is set to enter the packaged drinking water market under its own brand, leveraging its vast retail network of over 43,000 fuel outlets across India. The move is part of the company’s broader push to grow non-fuel revenue and offer value-added products to customers at its petrol pumps, CNBC TV18 reported.

IOC has issued an Expression of Interest (EoI) inviting firms to act as aggregators for manufacturing, quality assurance, supply chain management, logistics and rollout of the water brand. Under the proposed multi-year, revenue-sharing model, the Indian Oil brand will remain with the PSU, while selected partners will handle end-to-end execution from approved facilities.

The EoI, issued on September 18, 2026, allows interested companies to submit responses until October 16, 2026.

DO CHECKOUT: Charged ₹7 extra for water? Andhra temple shop ordered to pay ₹7 lakh penalty

Highway outlets to lead phased rollout

The rollout will be carried out in phases, beginning with highway retail outlets, which account for 21,435 of IOC’s 43,603 outlets. The company expects “on-the-go” demand for drinking water to be highest at these locations, making them the natural starting point.

After establishing the business on highways, Indian Oil plans to expand the product to urban and semi-urban fuel stations in its network.

Pack sizes and future plans

Initially, the offering will include polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles in 250 ml, 500 ml and 1-litre sizes, with the 1-litre pack positioned as the lead product. In the longer term, IOC is also exploring premium water, natural mineral water, alkaline water and functional hydration products, along with additional pack sizes.

Pricing will be decided by Indian Oil, as part of its strategy to increase non-fuel revenue from around ₹200 crore to ₹760 crore.

Focus on fuel outlets only for now

The current proposal is limited to IOC’s fuel outlets, covering company-owned company-operated (COCO), dealer-owned dealer-operated pumps and Kisan Seva Kendras. It does not extend to LPG agencies, institutional customers, offices, e-commerce or general trade at this stage.

ALSO READ: Indian Railways’ ₹10 crore plan: The massive water network serving train passengers

With this move, Indian Oil joins other fuel retailers in diversifying beyond petrol and diesel, using its extensive last-mile presence to tap into the fast-moving consumer goods segment.