Azerbaijan raises retail price for gasoline

On July 15, Azerbaijan raised the retail price for AI-92 automobile gasoline by 28.5%. This decision of the Tariff Council under the Azerbaijani Government was announced by the State TV Channel of Azerbaijan.

On July 15, the retail price for AI-92 automobile gasoline was increased from 0.7 manats (0.41 US dollars) to 0.9 manats (0.52 US dollars) per one litre.

The rise in the price is explained by the need to improve the quality of automobile gasoline, improve the environment, and expand investment opportunities to meet domestic demand and upgrade the oil refining industry.

According to the Tariff Council, even after the increase, in Azerbaijan, the price for AI-92 gasoline will be lower than in other CIS countries and the region. In particular, in Georgia, the price for one litre of gasoline is 0.86 US dollars, while in Russia 0.61 US dollars.

At present, Azerbaijan produces only AI-92 gasoline.

The rise in the price for AI-92 gasoline can result in a rise in prices for taxi services and bus transportation and lead to an increase in prices in other spheres because of a rise in transportation costs.

The Azerbaijani Ministry of Energy has explained that oil refineries in the country do not produce gasoline of those brands. Therefore, they are imported from Bulgaria, Romania, and Russia, and prices strongly depend on the exchange rate of the manat to US dollar and euro.

Earlier, Azerbaijan has increased the retail prices for gasoline and diesel fuel on December 3, 2013. After that, protest actions took place in Baku.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.