October 28, 2016p By: Andrew Ngebuva (Intern)
Data Entry Processing Officer at the National Petroleum Regulatory Agency, Salieu Kamara, yesterday said at the Ministry of Information and Communications press briefing that fuel subsidy would be removed on all petroleum products.
Kamara said the price of fuel remains at Le3,750 as a result of government’s payment of fuel subsidy, adding that government was losing Le6 billion on indirect subsidy each week and Le1.5 billion per week on direct subsidy.
He explained that indirect subsidy includes monies collected on excise duty and road users, while direct subsidy were monies that the government takes from the consolidated fund to subsidise fuel products in order to stabilise the price.
“Government is acquiring zero revenue in petroleum sales and is losing Le7.5 billion from direct and indirect subsidies on petroleum, and if the situation continues like this, the government will have no option but to remove the subsidy,” he warned.
According to him, the government takes money from the Consolidated Fund to pay oil marketing companies, while they forfeit all taxes in a bid to keep the fuel price at Le3,750.
Head of Petroleum Regulatory Agency, Dan Manson, said “Investment in the market is expanding and the supply and distribution has improved in 2016.We are expecting to keep it that way.”
He said their function was to regulate the oil marketing companies and oil business operators across the country to ensure efficient service delivery on a legal basis.
Deputy Minister of Information and Communications, Cornelius Deveaux, who chaired the press conference, said government was lobbying transport authorities to ensure that transport cost remain same when the subsidy is removed.