The central government on September 16, 2026, reduced the Windfall Tax on exports of petrol, diesel and Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF). The revised tax rates came into effect immediately from the night of September 16, 2026.
According to an order issued by the Ministry of Finance, the Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED) on petrol exports has been reduced from ₹1.50 to ₹0.50 per litre. This reduces the export tax by ₹1 per litre.
The total tax on diesel exports has been reduced from ₹25 to ₹20 per litre. The earlier levy included SAED along with a ₹1 per litre Road and Infrastructure Cess (RIC). Under the new decision, the RIC has been completely withdrawn.
The Windfall Tax on ATF exports has also been reduced. The tax on Aviation Turbine Fuel exports has now been fixed at ₹15 per litre.
The reduction in Windfall Tax applies to exports. Therefore, customers purchasing petrol and diesel in the domestic market will not receive any direct benefit from the decision.
The government has not made any change to the existing excise duty applicable to domestic sales. Therefore, based on this decision alone, petrol and diesel prices at retail fuel stations are not expected to decline.
The reduction in export duties may lower the cost for companies selling refined petroleum products from India in overseas markets. It may have a positive impact on the margins of their export businesses.
Oil sector companies such as Reliance, Nayara Energy and ONGC may be affected by the change, particularly businesses involving exports of refined petroleum products.
In Delhi, petrol is priced at ₹102.12 per litre and diesel at ₹95.62 per litre. In Mumbai, petrol is priced at ₹104.21 and diesel at ₹92.15 per litre. In Kolkata, petrol is priced at ₹104.95 and diesel at ₹91.82 per litre. In Chennai, petrol is priced at ₹100.75 and diesel at ₹92.34 per litre.
