BY: Hana Saada
ALGIERS- The president of the Hydrocarbons Regulatory Authority (ARH), Rachid Nadil, tackled the upward revision of fuel prices. “The country’s high authorities are not currently considering reviewing prices,” he said in statements to Ennahar TV.
According to him, “prices may be reviewed once we have put in place a targeted subsidy mechanism” at the benefit of low-income categories. Mr. Nadil estimated that “currently, the high cost of living does not allow fuel prices to increase”.
“Once we have put in place the targeted subsidy mechanism, then we will talk about the price increase”, he insisted, adding: “Currently, the revision of the price is not on the agenda. As in 2022, Mr. Nadil also foresaw a “slight increase” in fuel consumption in 2023, thanks to the economic recovery in Algeria.
Last Sunday, in an interview granted to the APS agency, the president of the ARH declared: “The fall in the prices of these products encourages their consumption, hence the need to review their commercial margin, by applying the system of direct subsidies for the benefit of social categories and low- and middle-income households”.
“It is incumbent on citizens to rationalize their consumption, with a view to saving and exporting this fuel to external markets to generate currencies that benefit the national economy and the citizen,” he said.
