ISLAMABAD (Kashmir English): The federal government has announced a new mechanism for revising prices of petroleum products, including petrol and diesel, on a daily basis in the country.
Addressing a press conference along with Information Minister Ataullah Tarar, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik said the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) will determine the fuel prices daily based on the international market and will be updated on its website.
“The decision was taken by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the federal cabinet,” he added.
At the outset of the presser, Malik thanked the nation on behalf of the government, which he said has patiently tried to bear the burden of this war.
He noted that despite the efforts of the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and the Chief of Army Staff, Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the US-Iran war seemed to be escalating in the region.
“The Cabinet and the prime minister have decided … Ogra will be given the responsibility to daily decide the fuel prices based on the international market,” the petroleum minister said.
He added that the cabinet has decided to bring transparency to the entire system of fuel prices, stating that “Ogra would not just publish the fuel rates on its website, but also publish the factors leading to the price that we see in each petrol pump.”
“The interests of all stakeholders will be taken into consideration with transparency, whether the price will fall or rise, or relief will be transferred to the people immediately,” Malik said.
He further said that the daily price review will be decided according to a seven-day weekly average in the international market.
‘Another step toward deregulation’
“This move is another step towards deregulation, and it would be ensured that the prices in the country were adjusted according to the international market without asking him,” he stated.
The petroleum minister said international fuel prices had risen sharply amid escalating regional tensions, noting that diesel prices had reached around $140 per barrel, while petrol had increased from $89 to $100 per barrel in the global market.
He said the government had previously absorbed part of the price increase by using national resources but acknowledged that the new pricing mechanism could be “painful” in the short term while benefiting the country’s economy in the long run.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the surge in oil prices was driven by global geopolitical tensions, adding that despite supply disruptions in several countries, Pakistan had maintained the availability of petroleum products.
He said the government had reduced its development budget and provided a Rs129 billion subsidy to cushion the impact on consumers.
Tarar added that several countries already revise petroleum prices daily and expressed confidence that the new mechanism would ensure timely relief whenever international prices decline.
He also said the daily pricing system would make the petroleum pricing process more transparent for the public.
