Energy Minister Iqbal Hassan Mahmood recently said that domestic fuel prices may be reduced if global rates fall to a tolerable level, though the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation continues to incur losses of Tk 78 crore daily on fuel sales.
Answering questions in the parliament, the minister said fuel prices in the international market remain above break-even. According to LC payments for imported fuel from March to June 11 this year, BPC's cumulative losses stand at Tk 17,039.56 crore.
International price movements have far outpaced government price adjustments, he said. Diesel prices on the global market rose 152 percent during the Middle East crisis, but the government increased domestic diesel prices by only 15 percent.
Similarly, octane prices climbed 82 percent internationally while domestic prices rose 21 percent.
As of June 10, Bangladesh held strategic reserves of 397,199 metric tons of diesel, 44,083 tons of octane, 19,164 tons of petrol, 76,712 tons of furnace oil, 41,329 tons of jet fuel, 13,916 tons of kerosene, and 1,026 tons of marine fuel.
The energy minister also reported that all quick rental power plants have been retired.
The government is pursuing renewable energy targets under the Renewable Energy Policy: 20 percent of electricity from renewables by 2030 and 30 percent by 2040, with a goal of 10,000 MW of solar capacity.
