Motorists braced for new fuel hikes

MOTORISTS are being warned of a new rise in prices at the pumps due to the increase in international oil prices, according to Trade Minister George Lillikas.

Meetings will be held tomorrow with all those involved to discuss the matter, as well as the impact any new rise would have on the broader economy.

Lillikas stressed that fuel prices had been rising in other countries at a steady pace over the past three months, but added it was not up to the authorities what price increase could be imposed.

“There is a free market so it is up to the petroleum companies what prices they will set,” said Lillikas.

KEVE General Secretary Panayiotis Loizides has expressed his concern that the increase in fuel prices would damage the economy.

“Companies are facing a serious problem of competitiveness with the free market and therefore the increase in fuel prices will make worse the already deteriorating situation with unforeseeable consequences,” Loizides said in a statement on Monday.

He added that petroleum companies would be forced to increase their fuel prices in order to make a profit.

“Even though the government has assured the people that they will not implement the increases on petrol until the abolition of the PNBS system of calculating fuel prices, we cannot be sure when this will happen.”

He admitted the increase in fuel prices would have consequences on the island’s economy, as now was a time of high competition and there had been a reduction of exports by 10 per cent.

The EAC is also concerned about the increase in fuel prices and said this would result in a rise in the price rise of electricity, based on the current law. EAC spokesman Costas Gavrielides said the law clearly stipulated that the EAC must conform to alterations in the price of fuel.

“The EAC is working towards not having to use petrol for electricity. The next three generators will work on diesel and natural gas, therefore the price of electricity will no longer depend on that of fuel,” said Gavrielides.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.