IGL raises CNG price by ₹2/kg; auto, taxi commuters in Delhi-NCR to get hit

Compressed natural gas (CNG) prices were hiked by ₹2 per kg in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) on Friday, as global energy market disruptions linked to the West Asia conflict pushed up fuel costs.

Indraprastha Gas Ltd (IGL), the city gas retailer for Delhi-NCR, said the price of CNG in the national capital has been raised ₹2 per kg with effect from Friday.

The company, however, kept the price of piped natural gas (PNG) supplied to households unchanged.

The latest increase is expected to raise transportation costs in Delhi-NCR, where a majority of autorickshaws and taxis operate on CNG.

The move comes a day after Mahanagar Gas Ltd (MGL) increased CNG prices across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region by ₹2 per kg, taking the retail price to ₹84 per kg.

Following the increase in Mumbai, autorickshaw unions demanded a Re 1 hike in the base fare of ₹26.

The CNG price revision follows a ₹3 per litre increase in petrol and diesel prices announced on Friday, the first hike in more than four years.

Petrol in Delhi now costs ₹97.77 per litre, up from ₹94.77, while diesel is priced at ₹90.67 per litre compared with ₹87.67 earlier.

The fuel price increases come amid mounting losses suffered by state-owned oil marketing companies as international crude oil prices surged following the conflict in West Asia and concerns over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri had earlier said state-run fuel retailers were collectively losing around ₹1,000 crore per day, with cumulative losses estimated at about ₹1 lakh crore.

Fuel prices had remained largely unchanged since April 2022, barring a ₹2 per litre reduction in petrol and diesel rates in March 2024 ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

Rates vary from state to state depending on local taxes.