Fuel imports reduced by half

In the past five months (July-November) of the current financial year, fuel import has decreased by 11 per cent.

According to the statistics provided by the Customs Department, 988,928 kiloliters of fuel (diesel, petrol, kerosene, air fuel, gas) worth 89 billion 309 million600 thousand rupees were imported during the period of five months. In the previous year, during the same period, 2 million 55 thousand 593 kiloliters of fuel worth 10 billion 988 million 298 thousand were imported. Fuel import volume has decreased by more than fifty pe rcent. According to the corporation, fuel consumption has decreased mainly due to of liquidity crunch.

Other factors contributing to reduced fuel import include high interest rates of banks, reduction in industrial production and lack of development and construction works.

According to the corporation, 25 to 30 per cent of the total consumption of diesel is used for industrial purposes. As diesel is consumed mainly for hydropower generation, the construction work has come to a halt in the recent period. According to the corporation, two lakhs 79,459 kiloliters of petrol worth Rs. 28 billion 596 million have been imported during the past five months.

Cooking LP gas worth 23 billion 75 crore eight thousand 638 rupees has been imported in five months period. According to the corporation, there has been a significant reduction in fuel consumption in Nepal as compared to India.

Petrol is 15 rupees per liter and diesel is 25 rupees more expensive in Nepal than in India. Earlier, when the price in Nepal was cheaper than in India, it was smuggled to India.