There was speculation in the market that fuel prices in India may come down due to the current cheap crude oil.
Oil marketing companies may take a long time to recover losses of over Rs 18,000 crore, according to the report.
Petrol and diesel prices in India are unlikely to come down anytime soon as oil marketing companies (OMCs) have to recover accumulated losses of Rs 18,000 crore due to higher crude oil prices in previous quarters, CNBC-TV18 reported citing sources. There was speculation in the market that fuel prices in India may come down due to the current cheap crude oil.
After the collapse of US banks Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, the price of Brent crude fell to $75.03, compared to more than $100 a year ago. Fuel prices in India have been stable since May 2022, when Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman cut excise duty to Rs 8 per liter on petrol and Rs 6 per liter on diesel.
According to a CNBC-TV18 report, government sources said it may take a long time for oil marketing companies to recoup their losses of over Rs 18,000 crore, ruling out the possibility of a fall in prices during this period.
To a question raised in Parliament on Thursday, the Ministry of Petroleum said, “While crude oil prices in rupee terms (Indian basket) increased by 23 per cent per barrel from December 2021 to March 2023, retail sales prices increased. In Delhi, petrol and diesel were 1.08 percent and 3.40 percent respectively.”
He further added, “Despite record high international prices, petrol and diesel prices have not been hiked by public sector oil marketing companies (OMCs) from April 6, 2022. Three OMCs in the public sector viz. IOCL, BPCL and HPCL posted losses of Rs 18,622 crore between April 2022 and December 2022.
On Friday, petrol was sold at Rs 96.72 per liter in Delhi, while diesel was sold at Rs 89.62 per litre. Meanwhile, petrol is selling at Rs 102.73 per liter and diesel at Rs 94.33 per liter in Chennai. Petrol prices continued to be the highest in Mumbai, which was sold at Rs 106.31 per liter and diesel at Rs 94.27 per litre. In Kolkata, petrol prices remained unchanged at Rs 106.03 per litre, while diesel was selling at Rs 92.76 per litre.
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