Centre Thrashing Out A Plan To Cut Petrol And Diesel Prices

A cut in the fuel prices could come anytime soon, an official source said. The Centre is working out a solution with the Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) to announce a cut in diesel and petrol prices, a report in the Indian Express said.

A meeting was held late Thursday, sources said, at Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s residence.

An earlier report said the government is seeking the support of the ONGC to share the burden of rising fuel prices as it is reluctant to cut the excise duty levied on petrol and diesel. What the government’s plan essentially means is to direct ONGC to sell its crude oil at below ruling international prices by capping the price for the entire fiscal year. Oil India Ltd, the other national oil producer, will not be a part of this scheme.

ONGC supplies an estimated 20 per cent of the country’s total crude oil requirement to refining and marketing companies IOC, HPCL and BPCL. ONGC had asked for a higher price to fund its capital expenditure for the next two years.

Meanwhile, a PTI report from Indore quoted Union Minister Piyuish Goyal as saying that the Centre is thrashing out a long-term plan to ease rising fuel prices. “International crude oil prices have risen sharply in recent times, which have impacted the prices of petrol and diesel in the country…The Centre, in consultation with states, is making a long-term plan so that the prices could be reduced and controlled in future,” Goyal said.