By Staff Reporter
KARACHI: The government slashed the price of high-speed diesel by Rs12.84 per liter, or 4.5%, while holding petrol steady for the fortnight through August 31, responding to shifts in international oil prices.
The adjustment, effective immediately, aims to pass on savings from falling global diesel costs amid broader economic pressures. In a late-night announcement on Friday, the Ministry of Finance said that the decision follows a review of international market trends and recommendations from the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) and other relevant ministries.
The ex-depot price of HSD now stands at Rs272.99 per liter, down from Rs285.83. This reduction reverses a trend of increases, with HSD prices having risen by Rs29.5 per liter over the past five quarters. HSD powers much of the transport sector, including heavy vehicles, trains and agricultural machinery such as trucks, buses, tractors, tube-wells and threshers. Price hikes in the fuel are viewed as inflationary, raising the cost of moving goods like vegetables and other essentials, which has prompted transporters to increase fares.
Petrol’s ex-depot price remains at Rs264.61 per liter. The fuel, used mainly in private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws and two-wheelers, hits the budgets of the middle and lower-middle class hardest. Petrol prices had climbed by Rs20 per liter over the past two months.
Officials said the international price of petrol rose by 15 US cents per barrel over the last fortnight, a minor adjustment included in the freight equalisation margin to avoid a price increase. In contrast, diesel dropped by about $4.5 per barrel, while the exchange rate slightly favoured the rupee, and import premiums remained stable.
Prices for kerosene and light diesel oil (LDO) were also lowered, by about Rs7.19 and Rs8.20 per liter, respectively. Kerosene fell 3.87% to Rs178.27 per liter, while LDO declined 4.85% to Rs162.37 per liter.
Fuel remains a key fiscal tool for the cash-strapped government, which imposes Rs95 per liter in taxes on both petrol and diesel. Despite zero general sales tax (GST) on petroleum products, the government charges Rs77.01 per liter on diesel and Rs78.02 per liter on petrol and high-octane products, incorporating the petroleum levy and a Rs2.25 per liter climate support levy (CSL). Custom duties of about Rs16-17 per liter apply to both petrol and HSD, whether locally produced or imported. Oil companies and dealers get Rs17 per liter for distribution and sale margins.
Petrol and HSD generate substantial revenue, with monthly sales of 700,000 to 800,000 tonnes, far outpacing kerosene’s 10,000 tonnes. In fiscal year 2025, the government collected Rs1.161 trillion from the petroleum levy alone and anticipates a 27% rise to Rs1.47 trillion this fiscal year.
In a separate development, Ogra announced a 1.3-1.5% increase in the price of regasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG) for sales at the transmission stage by the two Sui gas companies for the current month.
The RLNG sale price for Lahore-based Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), which serves Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), rose 1.32% to $10.98 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) at the transmission stage for August, up from $10.834 in July. At the distribution stage, SNGPL’s price increased 1.33% to $11.73 per mmBtu from $11.58. For Karachi-based Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL), covering Sindh and Balochistan, the transmission-stage price climbed 1.46% to $9.61 per mmBtu from $9.47. The distribution-stage price also rose 1.46% to $10.73 per mmBtu from $10.57.
Ogra said the increase in RLNG price was due to increase in delivered ex-ship (DES) price for August. System efficiencies improved, with SSGCL’s distribution-stage losses dropping from 16.16% to 10.6%, and SNGPL’s falling to 7.47% from 8.6% in February this year.
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