Your car couldn't have asked for anything better. Soon, you will be able to take it to a fuel station during 'happy hours,' and nobody will complain while it downs one litre of fuel after another.

Faced with competition from private retailers, public sector oil companies -- Indian Oil Corporation, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd and IBP -- are working on marketing strategies to lure the price-sensitive customer.

"Smart pricing, discounts and happy hours are concepts prevalent in developed nations. It is not happening in India today because the existing oil companies are owned by the government. But once the private sector makes a foray, we have to react. Competition will be so intense that the price of petrol in the evening may not be the same as in the morning," says N K Puri, director (marketing), HPCL.

The dealers, or the owners of the fuel stations, are planning to use direct mailers to lure prospective clients. They are looking at creating a dedicated marketing team to tap bulk buyers like corporates and transporters, who will be billed a lower retail price, maybe customised monthly.

Once there is competition from private players, a dealer may even be forced to forego his entire margin on bulk sales, says Ashok Mago, a fuel dealer in Delhi. "The dealer will rely on non-fuel businesses like convenience stores and jazzy malls for profits. In fact, I have to convert myself into a CEO," he adds.

"There will be more. With organised retailing coming of age, one can expect fuel pumps in shopping malls," says Sanjay Kaul, principal consultant (oil and gas), Pricewaterhouse Coopers.

A leading superstore chain has already appointed a former Boston Retail School chief to draw up plans, he points out.

The public sector oil marketing companies shelled out more than Rs 80 crore (Rs 800 million) on advertising and sales promotions in 2002-03, against less than Rs 5 crore (Rs 50 million) just two years ago.

"HPCL spent around Rs 20 crore (Rs 200 million) on advertising and sales promotion in the last year," Puri says.