KARACHI, Dec 16: The government pockets Rs25 on one litre petrol in the shape of petroleum development levy (PDL), excise duty and general sales tax, while it nets around Rs8 on one litre diesel.

PDL, excise duty and GST (government levies) on petrol now stand at Rs16.97, Rs0.88 and Rs7.34, respectively, on a litre petrol, while PDL and GST are Rs2.92 and Rs4.85, respectively, on one litre of diesel. There is also a 10 per cent customs duty on import of diesel.

This break-up of the government levies was disclosed by members of the 0il Companies Advisory Committee (OCAC) led by its chairman Farooq Rahmatullah at a press conference on Friday.

Defending the price hike, the OCAC chairman and General Secretary Abid Saeed Ibrahim said that from July 1, 2001 to December 15, 2005, prices of petroleum products had been adjusted 108 times, out of which the price of motor spirit had been raised 45 times as against a decrease by 23 times while they remained unchanged for 40 times.

The price of diesel had been increased 42 times in the same period as against the decline by 23 times, and at least 43 times it remained unchanged, they said.

Other factors that determine selling prices are ex-refinery selling price, price differential claim, inland freight, a four per cent dealer margin, 3.5 per cent distributor margin and secondary transport charges.

They linked the rising domestic oil price to the global price hike of crude oil and finished products owing to US economic recovery, high economic growth in China and India, production capacity constraints, seasonality, production control by oil producing countries and fear of calamities.

Pakistan imports 85 per cent of crude oil from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Iran at prices prevalent in the Arab Gulf and no preferential prices are given on the import of crude oil in Pakistan. Pakistan State Oil, Shell Pakistan and Caltex import a balance deficit of four million tons of diesel at competitive prices.

Since May 2004, diesel prices in the Arab Gulf market have increased by over 90 per cent whereas prices at the domestic level recorded by only 53 per cent. The oil marketing companies still owe Rs6.5 billion to the government in terms of price differentials, they add. The oil industry has invested over Rs111 billion in the last 10 years.