The federal government has decided to keep petroleum levies unchanged on petrol and diesel, maintaining current fuel prices, the Ministry of Energy announced on Friday.

A government notification confirmed that the petroleum levy will remain at Rs 105.37 per litre for petrol and Rs 55.24 per litre for diesel. To ensure price stability from March 14 to March 20, the government will provide a subsidy of Rs23 billion.

Under the scheme, oil marketing companies will receive a subsidy of Rs 49.63 per litre on petrol and Rs 75.05 per litre on diesel through price differential claims. The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) will disburse the funds after verification and auditing of the bills submitted by the companies.

The government has also received cabinet approval to establish a Prime Minister’s Austerity Fund, with the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) approving the transfer of Rs27.1 billion into the fund. Of this, Rs23 billion will be allocated to OGRA to cover the fuel subsidy payments.

The Director General (Oil) has formally instructed OGRA to implement the price differential payment mechanism, the ministry added.