Breathing space: Government makes small cut in petrol price
Petrol to be cheaper by Rs1.23 per litre, diesel to go up Rs0.36.
ISLAMABAD:
The government has announced a reduction of Rs1.23 per litre in the price of petrol in line with fluctuations in global oil markets, a slight relief for consumers who are increasingly shifting to petrol in the wake of frequent compressed natural gas (CNG) holidays and its shortage across the country.
Now, petrol will be sold for Rs101.42 per litre and the new price will come into effect from Saturday (today).
Prices of petroleum products are being announced on a monthly basis, though the government has not yet decided whether to opt for fortnightly or monthly revision.
On October 28, the Supreme Court had suspended weekly revision in oil prices and the link between CNG and petrol prices.
According to a notification, prices of high-speed diesel (HSD) and light diesel oil (LDO) will edge up by Rs0.36 and Rs0.45 per litre respectively.
Consumers of HSD, which is mostly consumed by heavy goods transport vehicles and farmers, will pay Rs110.13 per litre compared to previous price of Rs109.77. LDO, mainly consumed in industries, like power generation will be sold for Rs94.34 per litre against Rs93.89 earlier.
The price of kerosene oil, which is used in stoves in remote areas where liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is not readily available, will come down by Rs0.22 to Rs98.81 per litre.
Jet fuels – JP-1, JP-4 and JP-8 – will become slightly cheaper by Rs0.18, Rs0.07 and Rs0.18, standing at Rs88.04, Rs80.94 and Rs87.72 per litre respectively.
Fortnightly or monthly
Parliament has passed a resolution that says that oil prices should be determined on a monthly basis, but the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet has yet to take a decision.
ECC members are of the view that the resolution of parliament should be respected, but bureaucracy and Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh insist on fortnightly revision to frequently pass the impact of change in prices on to consumers.
According to officials, oil refineries and marketing companies have earned billions of rupees from the consumers because of weekly and fortnightly price revisions. A fortnightly review of oil prices, instead of monthly revision, will still benefit the oil industry significantly, they say.
Quoting examples, sources say the price of petrol would have been Rs100.18 per litre if determined on a monthly basis instead of Rs104.55 per litre after weekly or fortnightly change in September this year, a difference of Rs4.4.
In case of diesel, the price would have been Rs109.09 per litre in a monthly review compared to Rs112.13 per litre based on weekly or fortnightly review.
Similarly in October, the petrol price would have been Rs100.01 per litre as per monthly review against Rs105.49 per litre on a weekly or fortnightly basis.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 22nd, 2012.
The government has announced a reduction of Rs1.23 per litre in the price of petrol in line with fluctuations in global oil markets, a slight relief for consumers who are increasingly shifting to petrol in the wake of frequent compressed natural gas (CNG) holidays and its shortage across the country.
Now, petrol will be sold for Rs101.42 per litre and the new price will come into effect from Saturday (today).
Prices of petroleum products are being announced on a monthly basis, though the government has not yet decided whether to opt for fortnightly or monthly revision.
On October 28, the Supreme Court had suspended weekly revision in oil prices and the link between CNG and petrol prices.
According to a notification, prices of high-speed diesel (HSD) and light diesel oil (LDO) will edge up by Rs0.36 and Rs0.45 per litre respectively.
Consumers of HSD, which is mostly consumed by heavy goods transport vehicles and farmers, will pay Rs110.13 per litre compared to previous price of Rs109.77. LDO, mainly consumed in industries, like power generation will be sold for Rs94.34 per litre against Rs93.89 earlier.
The price of kerosene oil, which is used in stoves in remote areas where liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is not readily available, will come down by Rs0.22 to Rs98.81 per litre.
Jet fuels – JP-1, JP-4 and JP-8 – will become slightly cheaper by Rs0.18, Rs0.07 and Rs0.18, standing at Rs88.04, Rs80.94 and Rs87.72 per litre respectively.
Fortnightly or monthly
Parliament has passed a resolution that says that oil prices should be determined on a monthly basis, but the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet has yet to take a decision.
ECC members are of the view that the resolution of parliament should be respected, but bureaucracy and Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh insist on fortnightly revision to frequently pass the impact of change in prices on to consumers.
According to officials, oil refineries and marketing companies have earned billions of rupees from the consumers because of weekly and fortnightly price revisions. A fortnightly review of oil prices, instead of monthly revision, will still benefit the oil industry significantly, they say.
Quoting examples, sources say the price of petrol would have been Rs100.18 per litre if determined on a monthly basis instead of Rs104.55 per litre after weekly or fortnightly change in September this year, a difference of Rs4.4.
In case of diesel, the price would have been Rs109.09 per litre in a monthly review compared to Rs112.13 per litre based on weekly or fortnightly review.
Similarly in October, the petrol price would have been Rs100.01 per litre as per monthly review against Rs105.49 per litre on a weekly or fortnightly basis.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 22nd, 2012.