'Dynamic' daily fuel pricing in some cities from Monday

State-run oil marketers will roll out a dynamic fuel pricing pilot project from May 1 in five cities where the price of transport fuels would be changed daily so as to better cope with volatility in global crude oil prices.

Petrol and diesel prices are currently revised on a fortnightly basis.

All India Petroleum Dealers' Association President Ajay Bansal announced earlier this month that a decision to have dynamic fuel pricing pilot project had been taken by Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan following a meeting here with officials of the three oil marketers -- Indian Oil Corp, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum.

An Indian Oil official here said prices would change every midnight at 109 of its outlets in the five cities -- Puducherry and Vizag in southern India, Udaipur in the west, Jamshedpur in the east and Chandigarh in the north.

Under this project, the companies will change the price of transport fuels every day based on crude price movements. Dynamic pricing is followed in many developed countries.

Bansal told reporters that this move might lead to hoarding of fuel and should be launched pan-India to avoid confusion.

"Mohali and Panchkula are inter-linked to Chandigarh, and pumps there will now lose market to nearby cities if prices are high," he said.

Punjab Petroleum Dealers Association President Sandeep Sehgal told IANS that dealers in Chandigarh are worried that daily pricing could eat into their margins.

"When it was fortnightly pricing, dealers used to take maximum and minimum stocks depending on the prices, which might not happen now," he said.

--IANS

bc/vd/dg