Petrol price rises by Rs 1.6 a litre; diesel up by 50 paise

Post the hike, non-branded petrol will cost Rs 73.25 a litre while diesel will be sold at Rs 57.78 per litre in the national capital

Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) have raised petrol prices by Rs 1.69 a litre and diesel by 50 paise a litre, excluding state levies. Post the increase, non-branded petrol will cost Rs 73.25 a litre and diesel at Rs 57.78 a litre in the national capital.

The OMCs attributed the price rise to the Iraq crisis which has pushed crude oil prices up $4 a barrel in the past two weeks. “Also, the rupee-dollar exchange rate has deteriorated. The combined impact of both these factors has warranted the increase,” Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) stated.

The oil retailer added despite the diesel price hike — second since the new government took charge in May — underrecovery on retail diesel sales stands at Rs 3.4 a litre. In addition, IOC continues to suffer underrecovery of Rs 33 a litre on kerosene and Rs 449 on every cooking gas cylinder.

Post January 2013, the OMCs have been increasing the retail selling price of diesel by 50 paise a litre every month, according to the government’s directive. IOC is expected to report total underrecovery of Rs 56,550 crore on the sales of the three sensitive products — diesel, LPG and kerosene. Total underrecoveries for the three OMCs — IOC, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum — are likely to stand at Rs 1,07,850 crore.