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The government has increased the prices of all types of fuel by Tk20 per litre to offset rising international prices and reduce the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation’s (BPC) financial losses.
Under the revised prices, diesel will cost Tk135 per litre, up from Tk115, while kerosene will rise to Tk155 from Tk135. The price of octane has been raised to Tk165 from Tk145, and petrol to Tk160 from Tk140.
The Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources announced the decision in a press release on Sunday.
According to the ministry, fuel prices and freight charges in the global market have risen sharply since March due to the ongoing war in the Middle East. Although international oil prices have more than doubled, domestic fuel prices were kept unchanged for five months in the public interest.
As a result, BPC incurred losses of around Tk22,875.66 crore between March and August, the ministry said.
At current international prices, BPC is losing around Tk89 per litre on diesel, amounting to about Tk109 crore a day. The ministry said the annual loss from diesel alone could have reached nearly Tk40,000 crore.
The Tk20 increase is expected to reduce BPC’s annual losses by around Tk10,000 crore, according to the ministry.
It said diesel currently costs Tk134.76 per litre in Kolkata, Tk164.83 in Myanmar, Tk161.24 in Nepal, Tk179.42 in Sri Lanka and Tk185.48 in Pakistan.
The ministry said the price adjustment was also aimed at curbing fuel smuggling across the border, saving foreign currency, maintaining subsidies for electricity and gas, and continuing social safety-net programmes.
