Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) has said the country may have to face yet another fuel crisis in a few days time as the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has again cut the supply of petroleum products to Nepal.

IOC had relaxed its restriction on the supply of petrol to Nepal last week and increased petro supply by two folds after Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala requested India to resume normal supply of petroleum products, but NOC officials said it lasted for few days only.

NOC chief Bishwonath Goyal told the Kathmandu Post that the corporation received 1,400 kiloliters of petroleum products yesterday, way below the normal daily requirement of 2,500 kiloliters, and requested the government to either adjust oil prices or provide Rs 240 million to NOC every month to settle IOC’s dues.

“This is the only way to address the present oil crisis which has gripped the country for three weeks,” Goyal was quoted as saying by the Post.

Nepal has yet to settle Rs 6 billion in unpaid bills with the IOC because of which the latter has been curtailing supply of petroleum products to Nepal by almost 40 percent. Furthermore, the corporation has a debt worth Rs 4 billion to settle to local banks.

NOC currently incurs a monthly loss of Rs 250 million and this is said to be the reason why it is unable to maintain enough stock to tackle the fuel crisis.