In Mumbai, a kilogram of compressed natural gas now costs ₹91.50, after the city's gas utility added another ₹1.50 from November 15, its eighth increase this year. The movement is a small, practical echo of a larger world: fuel priced in distant markets and shaped by conflict far away arrives at the pump of a daily driver, who has little say in how it travels. The company points to pricier imported gas and tighter domestic supply, while those who earn their living on the road are left to absorb the difference. Whether the next turn of the meter brings relief or further strain remains an open q
Mumbai CNG Hits ₹91.50/kg in Eighth Hike of 2026, Up ₹11 Since January
In Mumbai, a kilogram of compressed natural gas now costs ₹91.50, after the city's gas utility added another ₹1.50 from November 15, its eighth increase this year. The movement is a small, practical echo of a larger world: fuel priced in distant markets and shaped by conflict far away arrives at the pump of a daily driver, who has little say in how it travels. The company points to pricier imported gas and tighter domestic supply, while those who earn their living on the road are left to absorb the difference. Whether the next turn of the meter brings relief or further strain remains an open question.
From Sunday, November 15, a kilogram of CNG in Mumbai and its surrounding areas costs ₹91.50. Mahanagar Gas Limited added ₹1.50, the eighth increase it has made this year. The year began at ₹80.50, so the total rise is ₹11, close to fourteen percent in under eleven months. It is the highest price the fuel has reached in 2026.
The hikes have landed on roughly 12.93 lakh CNG vehicles across the metropolitan region, from autorickshaws and taxis to private cars and buses. For operators who refuel each day, the cost goes straight into their running expenses.
MGL attributes the increases to rising procurement costs, smaller allocations of domestic gas, and heavier reliance on imported regasified LNG, whose prices follow international benchmarks. The company says the Middle East crisis has pushed expenses higher and that the hike only partly offsets them, promising uninterrupted supply.
Autorickshaw unions, led by Thampy Kurien of the Mumbai Rickshawmen's Union, say repeated fuel increases have erased the gains of the September fare revision. They want the minimum fare raised by ₹2, to ₹29 for the first 1.5 kilometres. That request must wait for meter recalibration, due by November 30.
Even so, piped gas for homes has not changed price. The coming weeks will show whether the fare demand gains ground and whether import costs ease.
From Sunday, November 15, a kilogram of compressed natural gas in Mumbai and the surrounding areas costs ₹91.50. Mahanagar Gas Limited (MGL) added ₹1.50 to the retail rate, the eighth increase it has made in 2026. The revised price took effect at midnight on November 14.
The year began with CNG at ₹80.50 per kg, so the total rise now stands at ₹11, or nearly 14 percent in less than eleven months. ₹91.50 is the highest level recorded so far this year. The latest step followed a ₹1 per kg increase on November 1, and since the start of September the price has climbed ₹5.50.
The sequence of hikes is easy to lay out. MGL raised rates by 50 paise in February and by ₹1 in April. Two increases of ₹2 each came in May. Another ₹2 in September brought the price to ₹88. The company then added ₹1 in October and ₹1 again on November 1, before this week's ₹1.50.
The people who feel it are those who depend on the fuel. The latest hike affects around 12.93 lakh CNG-powered vehicles across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region: autorickshaws, taxis, private cars and public transport vehicles. For operators who fill up daily, the added cost lands directly on their running expenses.
MGL explained the revision in a statement issued on Saturday. It pointed to rising gas procurement costs, reduced allocations of domestically produced natural gas, and a growing reliance on imported regasified liquefied natural gas, or RLNG. The company said the ongoing crisis in the Middle East had pushed up procurement expenses, and that strong demand and a larger share of imported gas in its supply mix had raised overall input costs. Imported RLNG is tied to international price benchmarks, which leaves costs exposed to swings in global energy markets.
MGL said the increase would only partially offset the higher input costs, and that it would keep CNG supplies uninterrupted. It added that it was continuing to work on optimising costs and passing benefits on to consumers.
The hikes have revived a demand from autorickshaw unions for another fare revision across the MMR. Thampy Kurien of the Mumbai Rickshawmen's Union said the repeated CNG increases had eroded the benefit of the fare revision introduced in September, when the minimum autorickshaw fare was raised to ₹27. Unions now want a further ₹2, which would make the minimum fare ₹29 for the first 1.5 kilometres.
The timing is awkward. Meter recalibration following the September revision is still underway, with November 30 set as the deadline to finish it. Any new fare would have to follow that process.
One price has not moved. While CNG has gone up eight times this year, MGL has left piped natural gas prices for domestic consumers unchanged. What to watch next is whether the fare demand gains traction once the recalibration deadline passes, and whether import costs ease enough to slow the pace of CNG increases.
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