Partial ATF hike for domestic carriers; international operators bear full brunt

GOVT MOVES TO PREVENT CRISIS AS FUEL COSTS SOAR

- SIMONTINI BHATTACHARJEE

The Centre on Wednesday announced a calibrated increase in aviation turbine fuel prices for domestic airlines, cushioning the impact of an unprecedented global surge driven by the ongoing conflict in West Asia and disruptions in critical energy supply routes.

While global benchmarks suggested that jet fuel prices in India could have more than doubled from April 1, state-owned oil marketing companies, in consultation with the ministries of petroleum and civil aviation, passed on only a partial increase of about 25 per cent, translating to roughly Rs 15 per litre, in a move aimed at protecting both airlines and passengers from a sharp cost shock.

The decision comes against the backdrop of extraordinary volatility in global energy markets, triggered in part by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key maritime route through which a significant share of the world's oil and fuel supplies pass. Officials said that under a fully market-linked system, aviation turbine fuel prices would have surged by over 100 per cent. Instead, domestic carriers will face a much lower increase, with prices in Delhi rising by Rs 8,289.04 per kilolitre, or 8.56 per cent, to Rs 1,04,927.18 per kilolitre from Rs 96,638.14 per kilolitre in March.

I Continued from Page 1 n contrast, international airlines and non-scheduled operators will bear the full impact of the price surge. For these carriers, aviation turbine fuel prices have risen by Rs 1,10,703.08 per kilolitre, or 114.5 per cent, reaching Rs 2,07,341.22 per kilolitre, marking the first time that jet fuel prices have crossed the Rs 2 lakh per kilolitre threshold. The previous peak was recorded in 2022, when prices touched around Rs 1.1 lakh per kilolitre following the Russia-Ukraine conflict.