No scope to reduce fuel oil prices: BPC

Jehangir Hussain

Jehangir Hussain

There is no scope for the government to reduce the price of fuel right now as Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) was still losing Tk 2-3 per litre on  diesel sales,  BPC Chairman ABM Azad said at  a press conference at his office on Tuesday.

State owned BPC incurred losses to the tune of   Tk9,000 crore from February to November 2022, he said.

BPC incurred losses worth Tk 43 crore on fuel oil sales in November alone, he said.

"BPC still loses Tk 2-3 per litre on diesel sales, actually we are not making any profit by selling petrol and octane. Under the circumstances there is no possibility of reducing the price of fuel oils for the time being," he said.

"BPC made profits in all types of fuels except diesel," he said.

The BPC chairman called the news conference to explain that a lighter vessel with 11 lakh litres of fuel sank, hit by another vessel in the Meghna River in Sadar upzila of Bhola district due to dense fog on Sunday.

As all the fuel spilled into the river, local people  collected some of it in containers.

All the 13 crew members of the vessel were rescued by another vessel passing by.

On August 5, the government announced increases  in diesel and kerosene price by Tk 34 to Tk 114 per litre, octane -by Tk 46 to Tk 135 per litre and petrol by Tk 44 to Tk 130 per litre.

On August 29, the government reduced the price of all types of oil by Tk 5 per litre.

At that time, the price of per barrel West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil was $90.66 which now fell to $75.18 per barrel.

Bangladesh imports refined oil at  around $25  costlier than the price of crude.

BPC Chairman admitted that the fuel price was falling in the international market and “if we want to adjust it in the local market we need to observe the situation for at least two months."

jehangirh01@gmail.com