The prices of CNG and piped natural gas (PNG) in Delhi have been hiked by Rs 3 each on Saturday in step with a rise in input natural gas prices. The Rs 3 per kg rise in CNG price is the first hike in over four months, while a Rs 3 per standard cubic metres increase in PNG price was the first raise in two months.
CNG prices in Delhi now stand at Rs 78.61 per kg, compared with Rs 75.61 per kg earlier, according to the information posted on the website of Indraprastha Gas Ltd (IGL). The rates of gas piped to household kitchens, called PNG, was increased to Rs 53.59 per standard cubic metre (scm) in Delhi from Rs 50.59 per scm. IGL retails CNG and piped cooking gas in the national capital and adjoining cities.
For CNG, it is the 14th increase in price since March 7. Rates were last increased by Rs 2 per kg on May 21. In all, the CNG price has risen by Rs 22.60 per kg during this period. Since April 2021, CNG prices have increased by Rs 35.21 per kg or 80 per cent. For PNG, it is the 10th increase in PNG rates since August 2021. In all prices have gone up by Rs 29.93 per scm, or almost 91 per cent.
The price hike in PNG follows the government raising natural gas prices by 40 per cent to a record $8.57 per million British thermal unit from October 1. The rate paid for gas produced from old fields, which make up for about two-thirds of all gas produced in the country, was hiked to $8.57 per million British thermal units from the current $6.1. Simultaneously, the price of gas from difficult and newer fields like the ones in Reliance Industries and its partner BP-operated deepsea D6 block in KG Basin, was hiked to $12.6 per mmBtu from $9.92.
Apart from Delhi, prices of CNG and PNG have also been increased in Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad and Gurugram, Ajmer and Kanpur.
In Gurugram, the CNG price has been hiked to Rs 86.94 per kg; while it has been revised upwards to Rs 81.17 per kg in Noida, Greater Noida & Ghaziabad. The latest CNG price amounts to Rs 88.88 per kg in Ajmer and Rs 89.81 per kg in Kanpur.
The government revises gas prices twice a year — from April 1 to September 30 and from October 1 to March 31. The price for October 1 to March 31 is based on the average price from July 2021 to June 2022.
Recently, in Mumbai also, Mahanagar Gas increased the retail price of CNG and PNG. City gas utility Mahanagar Gas has increased the retail price of compressed natural gas (CNG) and piped natural gas (PNG) by Rs 6 per kg and by Rs 4 per scm, respectively, in and around the megapolis from Monday midnight. The revised retail price of CNG now stands at Rs 86 per kg and domestic PNG at Rs 52.50 per scm.
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