Headroom to Cut Petrol, Diesel Prices by Rs 2-3 per Litre: Icra

Even as petroleum charges go to their lowered levels enhancing margins on retail automobile fuel, it provides oil promoting and advertising enterprise (OMCs) a clearance to scale back gasoline and diesel charges by Rs 2-3 per litre, rating firm Icra acknowledged on Thursday.

The price of a basket of petroleum India imports balanced $74 per barrel in September, under regarding $83-84 a barrel in March when gasoline and diesel charges had been final lowered by Rs 2 per litre.

In a word, Icra acknowledged the promoting and advertising margins on retail gross sales of automobile fuel for the Indian Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) have really boosted in present weeks with the lower in unrefined charges.

The rating firm expects that there’s clearance for the down modification of retail fuel charges if unrefined charges keep safe at current levels.

Girishkumar Kadam, Senior Vice President and Group Head, Corporate Ratings, ICRA, acknowledged: “ICRA estimates that the OMCs’ net realisation was higher by Rs 15 per litre for petrol and Rs 12 a litre for diesel vis-à-vis international product prices in September 2024 (till September 17). The retail selling price (RSPs) of these fuels have been unchanged since March 2024 (Rs 2/litre was reduced on petrol and diesel on March 15, 2024) and there appears to be headroom for their downward revision by Rs 2-3 per litre, if crude prices remain stable”.

Crude charges have really noticed a pointy lower within the final couple of months, principally because of weak worldwide monetary growth and excessive United States manufacturing and the OPEC+ has really pressed the rollback of its manufacturing cuts by 2 months to take care of the reducing charges.

A lower in the price of petroleum– which is exchanged fuel like gasoline and diesel at refineries– had really revived count on a lower in gasoline and diesel costs which have really gotten on a freeze for over 2 years at present disallowing a pre-election lower in March.

While gasoline and diesel costs is decontrolled (indicating oil enterprise have the pliability to restore retail costs), the state-owned fuel shops, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), have really seldom utilized this flexibility on condition that late 2021 by not modifying charges in accordance with expense.

They give up on a regular basis price modification in very early November 2021 when costs all through the nation struck an all-time excessive, motivating the federal authorities to curtail a element of the import tax obligation trek it took all through the pandemic to learn from lowered oil charges.

The freeze proceeded proper into 2022 but the war-led spike in international oil charges triggered a Rs 10 a litre stroll in gasoline and diesel charges from mid-March 2022 prior to 1 extra spherical of import tax obligation reduce curtailed each one of many Rs 13 a litre and Rs 16 a litre rise in tax obligations on gasoline and diesel completed all through the pandemic.

That adhered to the current price freeze which began on April 6, 2022, and proceeded until March 15 lower. Thereafter there has really been a freeze in costs as soon as extra.

Petrol costs Rs 94.72 per litre within the nationwide funding and diesel comes for Rs 87.62 a litre.

Icra acknowledged the Singapore Gross Refining Margins (GRMs) noticed appreciable small quantities within the very first fifty % of the 2024-25 monetary (April 2024 to March 2025) to regarding USD 4 per barrel because of a lower in fracture spreads with larger merchandise final result and lowered want.

The affect is mostly subsequently weak want from China because of rising electrical lorry (EV) gross sales, low-key sector want and property recession. Further, want in Europe has really moreover been restrained because of weak industrial activity and an architectural change in lorry fleets within the course of EVs, it acknowledged.

“A marketing gain of Rs 1 per litre on petrol and diesel would compensate for the GRM loss of USD 0.9 per barrel for the domestic refining and marketing industry,” Icra acknowledged.

Commenting on the OMCs’ productiveness, Kadam acknowledged: “The OMCs reported healthy operating margins in FY2024 (April 2023 to March 2024), recouping the losses incurred during FY2023. Despite moderation in the GRMs, the improvement in marketing margins is likely to result in the OMCs maintaining their profitability in H1 FY2025”.

However, inventory losses because of a pointy lower in unrefined charges can affect productiveness to a level in Q2 FY2025. Further, the productiveness for standalone refiners would definitely take a struck with the reducing GRMs.

Icra’s expectation on the refining and promoting and advertising market stays Stable.

Petroleum, Oil & & Lubricants (POL) consumption in India noticed year-on-year growth of 5 % in FY2024 and is most certainly to witness a 3-4 % growth in FY2025, pushed by monetary development, elevating flexibility and flight.

The OMCs have really meant a substantial capex within the refining sector.

The residential refining functionality is anticipated to spice up to 306 million tonne over the next 3 to 4 years from the current functionality of 256.8 million tonne since March 2024 to maintain the raised consumption and exports, Icra acknowledged anticipating the aptitude train of the PSU and the unique refiners to remain wholesome and balanced in FY2025.

(With PTI Inputs)