We will see further increases in fuel prices in Cyprus if international oil prices remain at current levels for a few more days, Savvas Prokopiou, President of the Pan-Cyprian Association of Gas Station Owners, told CNA.
“Unfortunately, things did not go as we would have liked, as international fuel prices remain high,” he added.
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Based on our experience, he continued, following the slight decrease in domestic fuel prices over the past few days, if international prices remain at these levels for just a few more days, “unfortunately, we will see further increases in fuel prices,” he added.
Specifically, Mr. Prokopiou said that international oil prices have stabilized at higher levels than in the previous period and added that while “over the past two weeks, we saw prices hovering around $100 to $102, but now we see them at around $110 to $112.”
“We expect and hope for a positive geopolitical development so that this situation can de-escalate and we can see prices moving downward,” he added.
Referring to an initiative by the Chair of the Parliamentary Energy Committee, DISY MP Nikos Georgiou, Mr. Prokopiou said that it involves enacting legislation regarding what information must appear on the receipts issued by gas stations.
“We welcome this move, as it is something we have been calling for for a long time,” he added.
He noted, however, that he does not believe—nor does he foresee—that “the receipt will include details showing exactly where consumers’ money is going.”
Small Subsidy for Heating Oil
The President of the Gas Station Owners Association asked the government, and specifically the Minister of Finance, “if possible, to provide additional subsidies for heating oil, because in our view, the assistance that has been announced is far too small.”
In addition, he requested subsidies for businesses whose primary expense is fuel, as this “greatly” affects their operations.
Mr. Prokopiou said that the Association represents approximately 60% of gas stations, while the remaining 40% are owned by companies, which “have the financial means to shoulder any economic burden arising from this situation, as well as private gas stations, which receive more than double the discounts we do and are therefore more viable.”
“The enormous problem is for us, the long-standing gas station owners who have been sustaining the sector, our companies, and the state through taxes for decades,” he added.
He noted that the Association’s member station owners—who account for 60% of all gas stations island-wide— “receive a discount of about 6 cents, whether the price is 1.30 euros or 2.30 euros,” and added that “the issue of survival is extremely, extremely difficult for us.”
Mr. Prokopiou said that if this increase continues, then some gas station owners who are members of the association “unfortunately will not be able to order fuel” due to the very high price, which makes “it no longer profitable to sell fuel,” adding that this has already been observed at some gas stations in other countries.
He noted that they operate on a 2.9% profit margin, and if someone pays them with a Visa card or a corporate Visa card, the fee is around 1.7% to 1.85%, and this makes our costs “far too high.”
Mr. Prokopiou explained that Visa’s markup on fuel prices is fixed and added that as fuel prices rise, so does the cost they incur for Visa card payments, especially with corporate Visa cards.
“For us, this means higher expenses when fuel prices rise without any additional revenue,” he added.
He also said that with the rise in international fuel prices, “our businesses need additional capital to maintain fuel reserves at the gas station, plus to cover monthly customers from whom we have to collect a larger amount due to the price increase,” he concluded.
