Amid surging crude oil prices, India on May 1 raised prices of multiple fuel products, including commercial liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders, aviation turbine fuel (ATF) for international flights, bulk diesel, and 5-kg free trade LPG cylinders.
India’s oil marketing companies (OMCs) announced the steepest-ever rate hike of ₹933 in commercial LPG cylinders, in line with a surge in international energy costs. A 19-kg cylinder now costs ₹3,071.50 in Delhi. In April, state-run OMCs had increased the price of commercial LPG cylinders by ₹195.50.
The companies, however, have kept domestic LPG cylinder prices unchanged at ₹913 (in Delhi). The retail pump prices of petrol and diesel also remain unchanged in the country.
“OMCs have undertaken a calibrated price revision aligned with prevailing international trends for a small set of products catering primarily to commercial, industrial and premium segments — such as commercial LPG including both bulk and packed LPG, bulk diesel and ATF for international operations — which constitute a relatively minor share of total consumption and are subject to routine market-linked adjustments,” said the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG).
In April, a total of 2.04 lakh tonnes of commercial LPG was sold, which is equivalent to more than 107.39 lakh 19-kg LPG cylinders, the oil ministry said in a press release. During the month, the OMCs sold more than 22.54 lakh 5-kg FTL cylinders.
Meanwhile, bulk diesel prices were hiked by ₹12 per litre, while rates for 5-kg FTL cylinders were increased by ₹216.5 per cylinder.
For jet fuel, state-run OMCs have kept ATF prices unchanged for scheduled domestic flights by airlines, while hiking the price for international flights and other non-scheduled operations.
The price of ATF for international flights has been hiked by $76.55 per kilolitre to $1,511.86 per kl from May 1. Jet fuel accounts for more than 40 per cent of Indian airlines’ operating costs. OMCs typically revise ATF prices at the start of each month.
In April, the government had announced “a partial and staggered increase” of 25 per cent, or ₹15 per litre, for domestic airlines, while international routes bore the full increase.
Separately, the government has slashed export duty on diesel and ATF to ₹23 per litre and ₹33 per litre, respectively, effective from May 1. The rate of duty on exports of petrol continues to remain nil, said an official notification.
The export duty has been introduced to ensure domestic availability of petroleum products by disincentivising exports in the backdrop of the West Asia crisis, the government said.
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