Oil cos up jet fuel rates by 2%; flying to get pricey

PSU oil cos have raised price of ATF and this may cause airlines to hike ticket prices.

State-owned oil firms today hiked jet fuel prices by almost 2 per cent,the sixth straight increase in rates since October when international crude oil prices started climbing.

Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) rates in Delhi have been hiked by Rs 935 per kilolitre,or 1.99 per cent,to Rs 47,816 per kl eith effect from midnight tonight,an official of Indian Oil Corp (IOC),the nation’s largest fuel retailer,said.

The latest hike comes on the back of a massive 3.6 per cent hike on December 15.

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With this hike,IOC and sister public sector retailers Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum have raised prices of jet fuel,or ATF,on six occasions since October.

The ATF price in Delhi on October 1 was Rs 40,728.52 per kl. The rates were increased by 17.4 per cent in six tranches since then,in tandem with a surge in global oil prices to USD 90 per barrel mark.

Jet fuel,will cost Rs 48,059 per kl in Mumbai,home to the nation’s busiest airport,from tomorrow,as against Rs 47,084.40 per kl currently.

No comment could be immediately obtained from airline companies,for whom fuel cost accounts for 40 per cent of their operating cost,on the impact of the latest price increase on passenger fares.

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However,airlines are expected to pass on most of the cost of the hike in ATF prices to passengers.

Exactly where this leaves the current spat between Aviation Minister Praful Patel and the airlines,over the latter’s ‘cartel-type’ behaviour in which they jacked-up ticket prices exorbitantly,is unclear.

The three state-owned oil retailers revise jet fuel prices on the 1st and 16th of every month,based on the average international price in the preceding fortnight.

In Kolkata,the ATF price has been hiked by Rs 974 to Rs 55,158 per kl,while in Chennai,it will cost Rs 51,275 per kl as against Rs 50269.99 per kl currently.