New business models

Who would have ever thought that we might come to a day when Nymex crude would slip to a ridiculous and unbelievable level of $15 and yet, no one is happy or exactly rushing to fill up tanks. Petrol and diesel, at least in other countries not charging such hefty excise duties, have never been so cheap. Yet there is no motivation. Companies have stocked up so much, they now have no place to store the oil even though it is available at these dirt cheap price!

Petrol pumps are desolate as there are some days not even one car coming to fill up. And that’s where Pune-based Repos Energy, a start-up backed by Ratan Tata is doing roaring business. This company runs mobile petrol pumps and is showing a jump in sales on account of its unique home delivery model. Business is so good, the company now has presence in 90 cities across India with more than 300 mobile petrol pumps, with customer base during this lockdown increasing by 15%.

Earlier, the customers were malls and hotels and now it is hospitals, residential societies, utility stores and government institutions. How does it work – after downloading the app, one needs to just order diesel. Repos has tied up with many petrol pumps and it delivers it at your location using a fuel delivery vehicle fitted with a mobile dispenser and 6,000-litre fuel tank.

Repos is fuelling National Information Centre (NIC), all major hospitals and Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) among other institutions in Pune. It is also providing services in other cities like Kolkata, Siliguri, Jamshedpur, Kota, Nagpur, etc.

Indeed this new era of virus is creating new heroes, new business models as we adapt to a new way of life.