Fuel prices in Morocco are heading for an unprecedented rise. They should reach this week, or even exceed, 18 dirhams per litre, according to the available data. This increase is part of a context of worrying increases in the prices of all products, goods and services in Morocco.
While operators in the hydrocarbon distribution sector update their prices at the beginning and in the middle of each month, Wednesday is expected to see a sharp rise in prices, especially for gasoline.
It is expected, according to the available data, that the price of gasoline will reach 18 dirhams per litre, while the price of diesel will be 15.5 dirhams/l.
This constant increase is maintained by the crisis between Russia and Ukraine. Despite the liberalization of the hydrocarbon sector in Morocco since 2015, fuel distribution companies have maintained the custom of changing prices every 15 days.
The government has repeatedly refused to intervene to control prices and protect the purchasing power of Moroccans already strained by this wave of inflation. The executive felt that it did not have the budget to support such a measure, and refused to tax the distributors.
It should be noted that fuels are subject to multiple taxes, in particular domestic consumption tax and value added tax. Removing these taxes could lower the final price of prices and thus reduce the burden on the consumer.
The government could also go to the players in the sector to ask them to reduce their profit margins during this period, but again this option is rejected.
In this same context, several partisan and union voices have been raised to demand a resumption of activities at the refinery. The Samir, the only one available to Morocco, and which, according to these same voices, would reduce the expenses linked to the international prices of refined oil.
In this sense, and at a time when fuel prices are at their peak, so to speak, against a backdrop of rising oil prices on the world market, the option of restarting this refinery comes up more and more in mouthes.
This measure, it is pointed out, would be able to reduce expenses and even generate profits thanks to the processes of oil refining which have considerably increased from 5 dollars a barrel to around 20 dollars, in a context marked by the conflict. Ukrainian and its impact on the global economy.
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