Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) Chairman Md Rafiqul Islam has said the state-owned corporation is losing around Tk90 on every litre of diesel, leaving no alternative but to raise fuel prices.
He made the remarks to Star News on Monday (September 21).
The government issued a gazette on Sunday night raising the prices of all major fuel oils by Tk20 per litre. The revised prices came into effect on Monday.
Before the latest increase, diesel was selling at Tk115 per litre, kerosene at Tk135, petrol at Tk140 and octane at Tk145.
Under the new rates, diesel now costs Tk135 per litre, kerosene Tk155, petrol Tk160 and octane Tk165.
The Energy and Mineral Resources Division said international fuel prices and freight charges had risen significantly since March amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Although international prices had more than doubled, domestic prices were not fully adjusted in the public interest.
As a result, BPC incurred losses of around Tk22,875.66 crore between March and August, according to the government.
The ministry said BPC’s loss on diesel sales was around Tk89 per litre at prevailing international market prices, with daily losses estimated at about Tk109 crore.
The latest price adjustment was aimed at reducing the financial burden on BPC amid sharply higher import costs. The government has also cited the need to align domestic fuel prices more closely with international market conditions.
