Consumers in Delhi are facing another surge in compressed natural gas (CNG) prices, with rates increasing by ₹2 per kilogram. Effective from 6 am on May 26, the cost of CNG in the capital now stands at ₹83.09 per kg.
Latest Price Hike Details
This latest revision marks the fourth price increase for CNG in Delhi in under two weeks. Since May 15, prices have cumulatively risen by ₹5 per kg. The current hike follows a ₹1 per kg increase on Saturday, which itself came after another ₹1 increase on May 17, and an initial ₹2 per kg hike on May 15.
Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL), the primary distributor in the region, continues to pass on the rising pressure from global energy markets to consumers. Following similar trends, CNG prices in Noida, Greater Noida, and Ghaziabad had previously climbed to ₹88.70 per kg. Mumbai’s CNG rates have also reached ₹84 per kg, aligning Delhi with the broader national trend of escalating gas prices.
Factors Driving the Increases
Industry sources attribute the significant rise in fuel prices to mounting concerns over potential supply disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz. This critical global oil transit route is currently at the center of ongoing tensions between the US and Iran, contributing to volatility in international energy markets.
Oil marketing companies have been absorbing substantial losses as global crude prices have surged well above the levels observed at the beginning of the year. The recent successive revisions in CNG prices are part of a broader pattern where these accumulated losses are gradually being transferred to consumers.
For daily commuters, commercial operators, and taxi drivers who rely on CNG for its historical cost advantage over petrol and diesel, this rapid succession of increases is progressively eroding that affordability benefit. With global energy markets remaining unsettled and no immediate resolution in sight for the situation in West Asia, the upward pressure on fuel prices is expected to persist.