Finance Ministry has asked Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) to repay loans, with the state-owned oil monopoly making profits amid falling international fuel prices. 

NOC has said it has cleared its loans taken from banks and institutions like Employment Provided Fund, Citizen Investment Trust, but it is yet to repay those taken from the government.

NOC’s liabilities had once reached as high as Rs37 billion.

Finance Secretary Lok Darsan Regmi said the ministry wrote to NOC around a week ago, asking the latter to repay Rs12.64 billion loans. “As the government is facing revenue deficit because of the blockade, we asked NOC to clear its dues,” he said.

However, an NOC official said the government should decide whether the oil monopoly’s profits be used for stocking petroleum or for repaying debts. “We have posted profit on the books, but we do not have cash,” said the official.

Meanwhile, the NOC board has decided not to distribute bonus to its staffers until its cumulative losses are recovered, according to Sushil Bhattarai, acting deputy managing director of NOC. 

With fuel prices hitting rock bottom in the international markets, NOC has been enjoying handsome profits lately. Despite the profits, NOC has not reduced fuel prices, citing huge debt burden. 

Bhattarai said India-imposed blockade inflicted losses worth Rs5 billion. “Had the blockade not been imposed, we would have been in a be better financial position by now,” he said.