Petrolimex, the biggest petroleum trader in Vietnam, has officially turned down incorrect information run by local media about a new price rise in remote areas, saying no companies in Vietnam have raised pump prices of petroleum products at this moment.
No Petrolimex sales outlets intentionally lifted the retail price of petrol to VND12,200 per liter from the current rate of VND11,220 as some newspapers reported, Vu The Bang, chief office manager of Petrolimex, told the press on August 7. He also added that Petrolimex already investigated into accused outlets in Yen Bai province and found the allegation was totally wrong.
Bang further said that any petroleum enterprises intentionally raising the prices without the government’s permission would face strict penalties.
Under prevailing rules, the selling price of petroleum products in remote areas can be 2 per cent higher than other regions in the country to make up transport and storage fees as these areas are far from the supply sources.
Hence, the higher price has existed for three months or so, Bang said. A liter of A92 gasoline and diesel oil is now standing at VND11,220 and VND8,058 in mountainous and remote areas, respectively, a 2 per cent higher than in urban areas.
An official from the Ministry of Finance said the Vietnamese Government has no plans to hike pump prices of petroleum products for the time being in spite of soaring world oil price.
Meanwhile, oil traders have in recent weeks expressed a great concern about volatile oil prices as a result of continued uncertainty in the Middle East and a recent production stop in a BP oil field in Alaska, US.
According to local traders, the current petrol price on Singapore-based trading is US$87.57 a barrel, or 159 liters, and after adding US$5 shipping fee, 10 per cent VAT and 10 per cent special consumption tax, the FOB price reaches over US$100 a barrel at Vietnamese seaports, equivalent to VND11,718 a liter.
The price would mount to VND14,000 if costs of transport, distribution and warehouse were added.
Oil trading firms are suffering a loss of nearly VND3,000 for every liter of petrol sold at the government-fixed price, market experts added.
Petrolimex, which holds over 60 per cent of the domestic market reported its daily loss of VND3 billion (US$188,359) on gasoline since April.
Currently, the State Treasury compensates 95 per cent of losses from sales of refined oil products, not petrol.
The State Budget is estimated to spend US$550 million to subsidize oil sales in the second half of this year. The figure for the first six months is not made available.
Last year, the State coffers subsidized VND10 trillion (US$628 million) for oil sales by domestic firms, all State run.
Vietnam, the sixth largest crude oil producer in Asia, reported importing 6.82 million tons of petroleum products worth US$3.67 billion in the first seven months of this year, down 2.9 per cent in volume but up 29 per cent in value against the same period last year.
Vietnam now has no refining facilities. All refined oil products are imported.
B.T
Vietnamese
