Islamabad: Prime Minister Shaybaz Sharif announced an increase of 10 rupees per liter in the oil tax on Saturday, which represents a 17 % increase to 70 rupees per liter. Despite this rise, gasoline and diesel prices will remain unchanged, as gasoline price is 255.63 rupees per liter and high -speed diesel at 258.64 rupees per liter. This decision allows the government to redirect the additional financial space towards reducing electricity prices by approximately 1.50 rupees per unit.
This strategy comes as a reaction to the constant financial burden on consumers due to the high electricity tariff. Despite the decrease in global oil prices in mid -March, the government decided not to transfer these savings to consumers. Instead, savings will help reduce electricity costs, with more details about the discount to be revealed on March 23.
According to the officials of the Ministry of Finance, the government’s decision is part of a wider effort to reduce electricity prices for consumers. Residential electricity prices, which were exhausted for families, are primarily amplified due to inefficiency, cross clips, and inert capabilities payments. The government aims to address these issues, while assigning the Minister of Authority Sardar Owais Legari to formulate a plan to reduce electricity rates by 6 rupees per unit.
The Federal Petroleum Minister, Ali Pervis Malik, explained that although gasoline prices in Pakistan are among the lowest rates in the region, the electricity costs are still the highest, which leads to the government’s efforts to budget Monday. The government expects to generate about 180 billion rupees annually to increase the oil tax, which will help funding relief from electricity.
Despite the relatively low gasoline prices in Pakistan compared to neighboring countries such as India and Sri Lanka, the government’s move aims to provide relief to medium groups and low income, which is affected by increased fuel and electricity costs.
The government’s commitment to general luxury is reflected in this comparison between the costs of gasoline and electricity. While the oil tax has been raised to absorb the low prices, officials hope to reduce financial pressure on families through low electricity bills.
In addition, the government was hoping that the International Monetary Fund would agree to a decrease in the rate of commodity and services tax on electricity bills, but the International Monetary Fund rejected this proposal. However, the government continues to focus on using the financial space created by global oil prices to reduce financial pressure on the public.
As part of this decision, the government has kept stable fuel prices until the end of March, while maintaining the following rates: gasoline at 255.63 rupees, high -speed oil at 258.64 rupees, kerosene oil at 168.13 rupees, and light diesel oil at 153.34 rupees.
While the petroleum industry recommended a reduction in a price of up to 14.16 rupees per liter based on the global price reduction, the government chose not to pass this benefit to consumers, and instead chose to use the additional tax to support electricity prices.
