Ashok Sinha is Chairman and Managing Director, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. An electrical engineer and an alumnus of IIM Bangalore with 29 years of experience in the petroleum industry, he has received several awards, including the India CFO Award 2001 for Information and knowledge Management by the Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU) India and American Express.

At the time of Independence, Burma Shell had a dominant presence in India, with a market share of 67%. However, nationalization of oil majors was inevitable and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) was formed in 1976 consequent to the nationalization of the erstwhile Burma Shell Oil Storage and Distribution Company and Burma Shell Refineries. Constraints imposed by the government were aplenty and it was little surprise that the company’s share collapsed to a meager 15% of the market. After a period of three years of further decline and inaction, BPCL embarked on an effort to resurrect itself.... more