Pakistan likely to slash fuel prices by up to Rs12 per litre

Pakistan’s Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) is expected to cut fuel prices for the next fortnight due to a decrease in global oil rates.

The authority uses the average price given by Platts — a global provider of energy and commodity benchmark prices — and the import premium to determine fuel prices every fortnight.

The next announcement will be made on July 31 and will be applicable from August 1-15.

For the next fortnight, global diesel prices are projected to decrease by 3.3%, averaging $93.7 per barrel, while petrol prices are expected to drop by 2.6%, averaging $87.1 per barrel.

Consequently, OGRA is expected to reduce the prices of diesel and petrol by Rs12 and Rs6 per litre, respectively.

However, Pakistanis may not be able to benefit from the decline in global rates if the government decides to maintain the rates or hike the Petroleum Development Levy (PDL) to increase its revenue.

Pakistanis currently pay a levy of Rs60 per litre on petrol and diesel along with a 10% customs duty.

The government plans to increase this to Rs70 per litre during the current fiscal year.

The government has set a petroleum development levy target of Rs1.281 trillion in the current fiscal year. Last year, the estimated levy collection stood at Rs960 billion.