HPCL to loose Rs 1,000 cr in Q3 if retail fuel prices are not hike

New Delhi, Nov 7 (UNI) State-owned Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) today said it will incur a lose of Rs 1,000 crore in the third quarter if retail fuel prices are not increased.

''If the current situation (surge in price of crude oil) prevails we will have to bear a substantial loss of Rs 1,000 crore in the current quarter,'' company's Chairman and Managing Director Arun Balakrishnan told reporters on the sidelines of Energy Summit here.

'To offset the losses there is a need to hike the price of petrol per litre by Rs five and Rs six, diesel by Rs 5.5, kerosene by Rs 18 and LPG cylinder by Rs 200,'' HPCL Director said.

He also pointed out that the duty cut on fuel products will of a great help to the oil marketing companies.

Oil prices powered past a record 98 dollars in Asian trade today, as the dollar sank to a new low.

Crude oil prices surged to record highs last month and crossed the 90 dollars a barrel mark. Oil prices have risen by nearly 35-40 per cent since summer.

The rally in oil prices has been attributed largely to the weakness in the US dollar which has prompted a shift in investments from dollar denominated securities to commodities such as crude oil.

The Indian basket is now trading at over 85 dollars per barrel, widening the revenue loss of Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum by nearly Rs 7,000 crore.

The state-run firms are currently incurring Rs 240 crore losses per day on sale of petrol, diesel, LPG (cooking gas) and PDS kerosene.

UNI