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The Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) has set a limit on the sale of fuel oil at the consumer level amid concerns over the stock in the country.
A BPC press release on Friday said that, amid the ongoing global crisis, negative news about fuel oil stocks in the media and on social media has led to panic buying among consumers, driving up demand.
As a result, dealers are trying to withdraw more fuel from depots than before, the organisation says. There are reports that some consumers are also trying to buy fuel oil in excess of their needs and store it illegally.
Under the circumstances, the BPC has fixed the amount of fuel oil per daily trip according to the type of vehicle.
According to the new guidelines, a maximum of two litres of octane or petrol can be supplied to motorcycles, 10 litres to private cars, and 20-25 litres to SUVs, jeeps, and microbuses.
Diesel-powered pickups and local buses can be supplied with 70-80 litres, while long-distance buses, trucks, covered vans, and container trucks can get up to 200-220 litres.
The BPC said that when purchasing fuel oil from a filling station, consumers will have to provide a purchase receipt stating the type, quantity, and price of the oil. The original copy of previous purchase receipts will have to be submitted the next time they purchase oil.
Dealers have also been asked to supply oil at the consumer level in accordance with this allocation and guidelines. At the same time, filling stations will have to provide stock and sales information to the relevant depots and extract oil.
Marketing companies have been asked to verify the stock and sales information according to the current allocation before supplying oil to dealers. The notice also said that amounts above the allocation cannot be supplied under any circumstances.
To maintain regular fuel supply in the country, import activities and schedules have been determined and shipments are being brought to the country regularly, the BPC said. In addition, oil is being sent from main installations to depots across the country on rail wagon tankers.
The organisation expressed its hope that a buffer stock of fuel oil will be set up in the country within a short time.
The notice also said that the government is obliged to buy and sell fuel oil at the set prices. Charging excess prices on the pretext of a crisis is a legal offence, it said.
The BPC also added that the government has not taken any decision on increasing the price of fuel oil under the current circumstances.