Panic buying leaves gas stations dry
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KATHMANDU, DEC 05 -
Gasoline stations in Kathmandu remained shut on Sunday as stocks ran out due to panic buying amid reports of reduced deliveries from India.
Petroleum dealers suspect that NOC wanted to create pressure on the government to hike oil prices at the earliest. “A number of gas stations were forced to pull down their shutters as they ran out of stock due to the crowds of motorists,” said an official of the Nepal Petroleum Dealers National Association (NPDNA). “Even though petrol pumps had enough stocks to last them till 3-4 pm on Sunday, they were all finished in three to four hours on Saturday,” said the NPDNA official.
NOC Spokesperson Mukunda Dhungel said that there was no shortage of petrol. “We supplied 386 kl of petrol in the Kathmandu valley on Sunday, which is the normal amount,” he said. However, fulfilling the diesel requirement has become difficult, he said. Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) officials said that Indian Oil Corporation had slashed shipments by 25 percent due to NoC’s falling behind on its payments.
As the government is reluctant to hike petroleum prices, high-level officials from the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies who are on the Nepal-India Inter Governmental Committee meeting scheduled to be held in Delhi from Monday,
will urge the Indian side to provide fuel on credit for the time being, the ministry official said.
A rise in crude prices in the international market has led to monthly losses of Rs 1.26 billion for NOC.
Posted on: 2011-12-05 09:06
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