Diesel price deregulation Not possible with current prices

IndianOil FPO in Jan-Mar, says oil secy






New Delhi: The government plans to sell more of its stake in state-owned Indian Oil Corp Ltd and via follow-on public offers in January-March, petroleum and natural gas secretary S Sundareshan said.



It is for the department of disinvestment in finance ministry to allocate slots for the FPO, Sundareshan said. The petroleum and natural gas secretary also said the government has no plan to deregulate retail price of diesel from its control for now, as it will lead to an unacceptable rise in price.



“(Diesel price deregulation)... Not possible with current prices (of global crude oil prices)... Diesel deregulation at this point will lead to price increase and it is unreasonable to accept it at this juncture,” Sundareshan said at the second day of the Economic Editors’ Conference.



International crude oil prices have risen to about $85 per barrel now from about $75 per barrel since the diesel price was hiked last time in June, he said. In June, the government allowed state-owned marketing companies to sell petrol at market-driven prices, leading to its price going up by Rs 3.5 per litre immediately.
TickerNews / The Financial Express