BPCL Dismisses Reports of Imaginary Fuel Price Cut Ahead of Lok Sabha Elections

The chairman and managing director of India's state-owned oil marketing company Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), G. Krishnakumar, has dismissed reports of a potential cut in fuel prices as "imaginary". Krishnakumar responded to media speculation about the government's possible fuel price reduction ahead of the general elections in April-May 2024.

"The reports of a cut in the retail prices of our fuel products are imaginary. The global situation is volatile. Therefore, it is difficult to comment on this at this stage," Krishnakumar stated.

He also noted that BPCL's net profit for the December quarter of 2023 surged by 82% to 8244 crore rupees. The speculation about a fuel price cut stemmed from the substantial increase in profits reported by the three state-owned oil marketing companies (OMCs) in the first half of the financial year 2023-24.

The combined profit of the three OMCs soared by 4917% to 1.26 lakh crore rupees in the first half of 2023-24, compared to the same period in 2022-23. It was suggested that the OMCs might contemplate a 5-10 rupees per litre reduction in fuel prices if this trend persisted into the third quarter.