Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) Executive Director Digambhar Jha has said that the Corporation has not been able to ease the supply of petroleum products due to a drastic cut on its import.
Speaking at a program at the Reporters Club on Sunday, Jha said the supply of petroleum products to Nepal has gone down by 45 per cent as it has not cleared its dues to the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC). According to Jha, the Corporation owes Rs 1.96 billion to IOC.
He stressed on the adjustment of the prices of petroleum products to address the financial crisis faced by the Corporation. Otherwise, the government should pay the dues to IOC, he asserted.
Jha also accused the petroleum dealers of fuelling the problem by hoarding petroleum products. Though the Corporation has supplied the petroleum to market as per the demand, the dealers have hoarded it and created an artificial shortage taking an advantage of a cut on its import, he said.
NOC Spokesperson Mukunda Prasad Dhungel added that the increasing power outage in the country is also responsible for the shortage of petroleum products. The consumption of petroleum products has gone up due to increasing duration of load-shedding, he said, arguing that there is no alternative to adjusting the prices of petroleum products as per the international market to end the problem.