Nagpur: Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Friday justified the rise in fuel prices across the country and said that the oil prices had gone up within the international market due to the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
While addressing an event, when asked about the rising prices in the country, Gadkari said, “In India, 80 per cent of the oil is imported. Amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, the oil prices have spiralled up within international markets and we cannot do anything about that.”
Gadkari has been making a pitch for making India self-reliant since 2004, “with which, we need to make our own fuel,” while laying stress on the need for developing indigenous energy generation capabilities. In the event, the union minister also said that Hindutva is often ‘projected in a wrong way.’
The petrol and diesel prices were hiked on Saturday for the fourth time in the last five days. The prices began to rise on Wednesday by 80 paise per litre. There was a rise in the prices after November 4, 2021.
What could be the possible reason for the hike in fuel prices in India?
Speculations rife that the fuel prices rose as assembly elections have ended in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Manipur and Uttarakhand, with BJP winning majority of the states.
However, as per reports, the main reason due to the price hike in the country is due to a rise in crude oil prices. The oil prices are at an all-time high after Russia invaded Ukraine.
India imports about 85% of its oil needs, making it the world’s third-biggest oil importer and consumer. The country’s local petrol and diesel prices are linked to the international costs of the two fuels, which move proportionally to crude prices.
The crude oil prices have risen sharply, nearly $115 per barrel, mainly due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The on-going conflict has put pressure on the state fuel giants– Indian oil corporation, Bharat petroleum Corporation and Hindustan petroleum corporation to increase the prices.
The latest price rise in the fuels mean that the common man will be paying less than 1% extra more at the pump, despite a substantial increase in global oil prices since the conflict in Ukraine began last month.
In the latest, the crude oil prices jumped by more than $4 on Monday with Brent crude climbing above $111 a barrel. The development comes after the EU considered joining the US in the Russian oil ban. Prices are likely to move higher ahead of talks between the European Union and US President Joe Biden in a series of summits that aims to harden the West’s response to Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.
How will the Ukraine–Russia conflict affect crude oil prices?
The Russia-Ukraine conflict has begun to have a major impact on the world energy markets. Ever since the conflict started, and especially after the announcement of economic sanctions on Russia, crude prices have been steadily climbing. They have risen most sharply in Europe, which is heavily dependent on Russian natural gas.
Is Russia the largest oil producer?
Russia provides roughly 10 percent of the global supply of oil. Russia is one of the three top oil producers in the world, after the United States and Saudi Arabia. Shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February, traders and European refineries significantly reduced their purchases of Russian oil.
Why crude oil prices are rising?
According to the IEA, crude oil prices increased in 2021 as rising Covid vaccination rates, loosening pandemic-related restrictions, and a growing economy resulted in global petroleum demand rising faster than petroleum supply.
