ISLAMABAD: The government increased the prices of petrol, diesel and other petroleum products by up to Rs5.57 per litre which went into effect at Monday midnight.

Under the revised rates approved by the government, the ex-depot price for petrol has been increased by Rs4.12 per litre to Rs113.25 per litre.

The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) had recommended an increase of Rs5.45 per litre but the government slightly reduced petroleum levy to keep the increase at Rs4.12.

On the other hand, the price of high speed diesel was increased by Rs4.69 per litre by raising the petroleum levy.

As a result, the ex-depot price of HSD, used in agriculture and transport sector, has been jacked up to Rs116.95 from Rs112.26 per litre.

The price of kerosene oil, used mostly in rural areas for cooking and in lamps, has been increased to Rs108.13 per litre from Rs105.99, up by Rs2.14 per litre.

The ex-depot price for High Octane Blending Component (HOBC), used in luxury vehicles, has been increased by Rs5.57 to Rs143.90 per litre. The price of light diesel oil, used in industrial sector, has been increased by Rs2.81 per litre to Rs101.24 per litre.

The retail prices of petroleum products are usually 30-40 paisa per litre more than ex-depot prices because of transportation cost from depots to retail outlets.

An official said Ogra had recommended to the government to absorb a part of the proposed increase by reducing the petroleum levy, instead of passing on full impact to consumers who are already facing inflationary pressures.

He said the government was currently getting about Rs7.5 billion per month on account of the petroleum levy and another Rs21.5 billion per month from general sales tax. In Ogra’s opinion, the government could maintain its overall monthly revenue of Rs29 billion if it partially absorbed the proposed increase because of higher product prices translate into higher GST collection.

Besides the import parity price of petroleum products, profit margins to dealers and oil companies, the government is currently charging petroleum levy at Rs14 per litre on HOBC, Rs8.67 on petrol, Rs6.46 on HSD and Rs6 on kerosene oil. On top of that the government is charging 17 per cent GST on sale price of petroleum products that rises as import parity prices move up

The price of aviation fuel, jet petrol (JP-1), has been fixed at Rs96.42 per litre, up by Rs2.13 per litre and of JP-4 at Rs89.52 per litre, up by Rs3.06 per litre. Likewise, the price for JP-8 has been increased to Rs96.07 per litre from Rs93.95, up by Rs2.12 per litre.