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Sunday, 11 October 2020

Fuel prices to remain unchanged till end of 2020

The government’s fuel pricing committee decided to leave fuel prices unchanged for the remainder of 2020, according to a cabinet statement. The decision, made at the committee’s final quarterly meeting of the year, leaves 95-octane at EGP 8.50 per liter, 92-octane at EGP 7.50, and 80-octane at EGP 6.25. Diesel remains at EGP 6.75 per liter while the price of mazut (heavy fuel oil) for factories will stay at EGP 3.9k per tonne. The committee decided against making changes to prices due to movements in global oil prices and changes in the USD-EGP exchange rate, the statement said. The price of Brent crude remained flat through 3Q closing marginally lower at the end of September, while the EGP gained more than 2% against the greenback during the three-month period.

The committee kept prices on hold when it last met in July, maintaining levels set following its EGP 0.25 cut in April. The fuel pricing committee was formed in 2018 and meets every quarter to review fuel prices, implementing a pricing mechanism which pegs prices to Brent crude and global exchange rates. The committee’s next meeting is scheduled for January 2021.

In related news, industries could also see their gas costs slashed by 10-20%, based on recommendations by a ministerial committee, Al Dostor reports, citing an Oil Ministry official. The committee reviews gas prices for factories every six months and has been under increasing pressure to reduce utility costs for industries in the wake of covid-19. Last month, government sources suggested gas prices could be lowered to at least USD 4/mmBtu from USD 4.50/mmBtu. The government had reduced prices twice in the past year: once last October and once in March as part of its stimulus measures to protect industry through the covid lockdown.

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