The federal government has decided to keep the petroleum levy unchanged on petrol and diesel while maintaining the existing fuel prices.
A government notification confirmed that the petroleum levy on petrol will remain at Rs. 105.37 per litre, while the levy on diesel will remain at Rs. 55.24 per litre. Petrol is currently priced at Rs. 321.17 per litre and diesel at Rs. 335.86 per litre, pending the next petroleum price review.
The government will provide a subsidy of Rs. 23 billion to keep petrol and diesel prices unchanged during the period from March 14 to March 20, the ministry said.
Under the arrangement, the government will pay Rs. 49.63 per litre subsidy on petrol and Rs. 75.05 per litre subsidy on diesel. The payments will be made to oil marketing companies in the form of price differential claims.
The ministry said the Rs. 23 billion in price differential claims will be disbursed through the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) after verification and auditing of bills submitted by oil marketing companies.
The government has also obtained cabinet approval to establish a Prime Minister’s Austerity Fund, with the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) approving the transfer of Rs. 27.1 billion into the fund.
Out of this amount, Rs. 23 billion will be transferred to OGRA to cover the subsidy payments aimed at stabilizing fuel prices.
The Director General (Oil) has formally written to OGRA regarding the implementation of the price differential payment mechanism, the ministry added.
