Showing posts with label Climbing fuel prices. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Climbing fuel prices. Show all posts
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Friday, March 28, 2008
Thursday, January 31, 2008
EdC: No electricity price hike
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
While the cost of electricity along various provinces is fluctuating with the price of oil, in Phnom Penh, a rumor indicated that EdC plans to increase the price of electricity in 2008. Tan Kim Vin, the director of EdC, told the Rasmei Kampuchea newspaper on 30 January that the gasoline price hike brought losses to EdC, but that EdC has no plan to increase the price of electricity to make up for the increased price of oil, because the EdC loss is supplemented by government subsidies. An official of EdC told the newspaper that, currently, in Phnom Penh, the number of electricity users reaches 190,000. Each month, the number of electricity users increases between 700 to 1,000. This demand forces EdC to find new source of electricity to fulfill the demands of its users.
Saturday, December 15, 2007
Hun Sen's gov't quietly spends $100 million each year to subsidize fuel costs?
Hun Sen Denies Reports of Gov't Fuel Price Failings
By Win Thida, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
13 December 2007
By Win Thida, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
13 December 2007
Prime Minister Hun Sen said Thursday the government had taken several quiet measures to curb the rapidly rising price in fuel.
He was responding to recent criticism that the government had ignored a looming price crisis, as Cambodians find themselves paying more for gas than their neighbors.
Hun Sen said the government had "quietly subsidized" fuel costs, with more than $100 million.
"It's not that the government ignores it, but we don't have an oil reserve" to cushion the price spike, Hun Sen said.
Even Indonesia, which does have a reserve, has had to raise the price of fuel, he said.
Human Rights Party officials said they would gather up to 500 participants in a public forum later this month in an effort to find a solution.
"And if there is no solution to the problems, we are going to stage a big demonstration as our last measure," said Keo Remy, Human Rights Party vice president.
He was responding to recent criticism that the government had ignored a looming price crisis, as Cambodians find themselves paying more for gas than their neighbors.
Hun Sen said the government had "quietly subsidized" fuel costs, with more than $100 million.
"It's not that the government ignores it, but we don't have an oil reserve" to cushion the price spike, Hun Sen said.
Even Indonesia, which does have a reserve, has had to raise the price of fuel, he said.
Human Rights Party officials said they would gather up to 500 participants in a public forum later this month in an effort to find a solution.
"And if there is no solution to the problems, we are going to stage a big demonstration as our last measure," said Keo Remy, Human Rights Party vice president.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Sok Kong on reducing price of fuel: Why would we do that?
Sokimex: Gov't Cannot Help Fuel PricesBy Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
10 December 2007
Cambodia has seen increasingly high prices for fuel, including gasoline, in recent months. The high prices are cutting deep into the already precarious budgets of Cambodia's poor. But Sok Kong, the president of one of Cambodia's most influential fuel companies, Sokimex, said Saturday there was little the government could do. He spoke to VOA Khmer to explain why.
Q: Some political parties as well as civil society organizations officials say the oil price in Cambodia is much higher than in neighboring countries. So, what can you say about this?
A: Regarding this problem, I would like to put it this way. So far, the fact that the oil price in Cambodia is soaring is because the oil price in the international market is also increasing. So we just follow the international market. And the reason the neighboring countries' oil prices are still low is that their governments are able to subsidize to make up the loss so that they can keep the price low. But the Cambodian government is so poor that it is not able to subsidize to make up the loss and keep the prices low. If our government does this, how can our civil servants be paid? The civil servants' salaries depend on tax income, and if the government spends the budget from taxes to make up the loss, there is nothing left. It doesn't mean that the government ignores the problem.
Q: How does the price of fuel in Cambodia compare to that in neighboring countries?
A: Our oil price is the highest, higher than Vietnam, higher than Thailand. Why? Because Vietnam has the budget to subsidize to make up the loss, and they use money from their oil reserves and other things to make up the loss. And for us, we are so poor that we don't have that. We might be able to reduce the oil price in 2010 or 2020 when we can extract our crude oil.
Q: Can some major fuel companies in Cambodia reduce their fuel price if there are requests from the government?
A: Nowadays, we have already suffered from the loss as the oil price increases. I mean when the oil price was low, we made only a few cents, and when the price was increasing, we still sold it at that price. We could not increase it further because we did it according to the international price range.
Q: So far, there is criticism from some political parties as well as civic organizations that fuel companies pay too many taxes. Some of this does not go to the government's tax department, in the process of importing fuel into Cambodia. So could you explain how your company imports fuel into Cambodia?
A: The government has hired one private foreign company to check our fuel in Singapore and issue a certificate, and when the fuel arrives in the port of Sihanoukville, there are [customs] officials and tax department officials at the port to continue doing their jobs. And [these groups] just accuse us of doing this or that thing. We cannot do that, as we are a big company, not a small one. They just accuse us of doing all those things. It's hard to say because they are in politics; they just say whatever they want, and it affects the image of a big company and our business as a whole.
Q: Have any oil companies tried to evade tax payment so far or do they comply with the government's regulations?
A: I don't know about small companies, I don't know what they do, but big companies cannot do that. So far, as I have explained, we have reached a size that in 2009 or 2010 we are going to sell our stock. So, we cannot do anything like that, or it will be ruined. And we do not run the business by ourselves: we hire staff to manage. We could evade tax payment as long as our staff didn't know, but if they knew, we could not do that. [Groups] just accuse us with whatever they want, because they don't run a fuel business. If they did, they would know what it is like.
Q: Does your company have any strategies to lower the fuel price?
A: We have already reduced the price of our fuel. And why would we do that? Foreign companies sell their oil at 100 riel above our cost. We have already reduced the price. We are a private company, so we don't know what to do to lower it. If we do [more], we will suffer a great loss. How can we feed our staff?
Q: Some political parties as well as civil society organizations officials say the oil price in Cambodia is much higher than in neighboring countries. So, what can you say about this?
A: Regarding this problem, I would like to put it this way. So far, the fact that the oil price in Cambodia is soaring is because the oil price in the international market is also increasing. So we just follow the international market. And the reason the neighboring countries' oil prices are still low is that their governments are able to subsidize to make up the loss so that they can keep the price low. But the Cambodian government is so poor that it is not able to subsidize to make up the loss and keep the prices low. If our government does this, how can our civil servants be paid? The civil servants' salaries depend on tax income, and if the government spends the budget from taxes to make up the loss, there is nothing left. It doesn't mean that the government ignores the problem.
Q: How does the price of fuel in Cambodia compare to that in neighboring countries?
A: Our oil price is the highest, higher than Vietnam, higher than Thailand. Why? Because Vietnam has the budget to subsidize to make up the loss, and they use money from their oil reserves and other things to make up the loss. And for us, we are so poor that we don't have that. We might be able to reduce the oil price in 2010 or 2020 when we can extract our crude oil.
Q: Can some major fuel companies in Cambodia reduce their fuel price if there are requests from the government?
A: Nowadays, we have already suffered from the loss as the oil price increases. I mean when the oil price was low, we made only a few cents, and when the price was increasing, we still sold it at that price. We could not increase it further because we did it according to the international price range.
Q: So far, there is criticism from some political parties as well as civic organizations that fuel companies pay too many taxes. Some of this does not go to the government's tax department, in the process of importing fuel into Cambodia. So could you explain how your company imports fuel into Cambodia?
A: The government has hired one private foreign company to check our fuel in Singapore and issue a certificate, and when the fuel arrives in the port of Sihanoukville, there are [customs] officials and tax department officials at the port to continue doing their jobs. And [these groups] just accuse us of doing this or that thing. We cannot do that, as we are a big company, not a small one. They just accuse us of doing all those things. It's hard to say because they are in politics; they just say whatever they want, and it affects the image of a big company and our business as a whole.
Q: Have any oil companies tried to evade tax payment so far or do they comply with the government's regulations?
A: I don't know about small companies, I don't know what they do, but big companies cannot do that. So far, as I have explained, we have reached a size that in 2009 or 2010 we are going to sell our stock. So, we cannot do anything like that, or it will be ruined. And we do not run the business by ourselves: we hire staff to manage. We could evade tax payment as long as our staff didn't know, but if they knew, we could not do that. [Groups] just accuse us with whatever they want, because they don't run a fuel business. If they did, they would know what it is like.
Q: Does your company have any strategies to lower the fuel price?
A: We have already reduced the price of our fuel. And why would we do that? Foreign companies sell their oil at 100 riel above our cost. We have already reduced the price. We are a private company, so we don't know what to do to lower it. If we do [more], we will suffer a great loss. How can we feed our staff?
Friday, November 09, 2007
Keat Chhon's confession: Hun Sen's gov't unable to lower fuel costs ... Time for a gov't change?
Minister: Gov't 'Unable' to Lower Fuel Costs By Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
08 November 2007
Cambodia's government cannot immediately bring down the high costs of fuel, despite calls from the opposition and threatened mass demonstrations, a senior official said Thursday.
In an exclusive interview with VOA Khmer, Finance Minister Keat Chhon said Thursday the government was "unable to decrease the price of gasoline."
Opposition calls for mass demonstrations over the rising price of fuel was a "political trick," he said, adding that the government had used "silent" tactics like duty reduction and arrests of smugglers to allay some of the price rise.
Fuel prices have tripled in Cambodia this year, putting a heavy squeeze on some of the country's poorest. A liter of gas in Phnom Penh cost 4,350 riel Thursday, as the international price of oil neared $100 a barrel.
"We're helping to curb the price of gas by means of tax reduction," Keat Chhon said. "In September alone, we took a loss of $15 million. And for the past nine months, the losses reached $125 million."
In another effort to keep prices low, the government had taken measures to stop the transport of fuel by smugglers, Keat Chhon said, "and we're not going to show them any mercy."
Human Rights Party Vice President Keo Remy said Thursday fuel prices in Laos were lower than Cambodia and repeated claims that inept governance was to blame.
The Human Rights and Norodom Ranariddh parties have each called on the government to bring down the cost of fuel or suffer mass demonstrations.
In an exclusive interview with VOA Khmer, Finance Minister Keat Chhon said Thursday the government was "unable to decrease the price of gasoline."
Opposition calls for mass demonstrations over the rising price of fuel was a "political trick," he said, adding that the government had used "silent" tactics like duty reduction and arrests of smugglers to allay some of the price rise.
Fuel prices have tripled in Cambodia this year, putting a heavy squeeze on some of the country's poorest. A liter of gas in Phnom Penh cost 4,350 riel Thursday, as the international price of oil neared $100 a barrel.
"We're helping to curb the price of gas by means of tax reduction," Keat Chhon said. "In September alone, we took a loss of $15 million. And for the past nine months, the losses reached $125 million."
In another effort to keep prices low, the government had taken measures to stop the transport of fuel by smugglers, Keat Chhon said, "and we're not going to show them any mercy."
Human Rights Party Vice President Keo Remy said Thursday fuel prices in Laos were lower than Cambodia and repeated claims that inept governance was to blame.
The Human Rights and Norodom Ranariddh parties have each called on the government to bring down the cost of fuel or suffer mass demonstrations.
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Cooking gas price increases to $17 a container
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
While the price of gasoline (petrol) increases to almost 4,500 riels (~$1.13) per liter, the price of cooking gas also rises to $17 a container, and the cooking gas price steadily rises in the past 2 to 3 months. A gas seller told the Rasmei Kampuchea newspaper that the price of one container of gas weighing 15 kilos has reached $17, after steadily climbing up in the past 2 to 3 months. The gas seller said that in September 2007, the price of a container of gas was $15, and it went up to $16 the following month, to finally reach the current price of $17. An official from the Total oil company told Rasmei Kampuchea that the gas price increases just like gasoline and diesel fuel, or it increases based on the international market price. The Total oil official said that the price of gasoline could increase even further by the end of this year and early next year because of the cold season, and the world needs more than can be produced, this is the main case of the price increase.
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
Fuel price increase is not the government problem!
Click on the article in Khmer to zoom in06 November 2007
[Unorthodox] OpEd by James Sok
Posted online
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy
Samdach Hun Sen said that the fuel price increase should be blamed on OPEC, and the government is not the source of the fuel price increase. This is rightly so because Samdach Hun Sen is only the prime minister and he is not a fuel dealer.
He already told everyone not to buy too many cars and motorcycles. He wants Cambodians learn how to walk so that they wouldn’t be affected by high cholesterol diseases. As for the transportations (of merchandises), Samdach wants the people to use carts pulled by oxen, buffaloes and horses, and if the markets are nearby, he wants us to learn how to carry (the merchandises) on pole over our shoulders, on our heads, on the backend of a pole over our shoulders, on our hips, or on our shoulders, and this also helps the environment as well. However, the population does not listen to him, therefore, how can anybody blame Samdach for the fuel price increase?
He already told everyone not to buy too many cars and motorcycles. He wants Cambodians learn how to walk so that they wouldn’t be affected by high cholesterol diseases. As for the transportations (of merchandises), Samdach wants the people to use carts pulled by oxen, buffaloes and horses, and if the markets are nearby, he wants us to learn how to carry (the merchandises) on pole over our shoulders, on our heads, on the backend of a pole over our shoulders, on our hips, or on our shoulders, and this also helps the environment as well. However, the population does not listen to him, therefore, how can anybody blame Samdach for the fuel price increase?
Government Blasted Over Fuel Prices
Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
06 November 2007
Original report from Phnom Penh
06 November 2007
The Human Rights Party on Tuesday threatened to hold mass demonstrations if the government is unable to allay rising prices for fuel and other commodities, echoing a similar call from the Norodom Ranariddh Party.
The price of gasoline has nearly tripled this year, putting a heavy burden on some of Cambodia's poorest, while the prices of other goods continue to rise.
Poor regulation from the government in keeping costs down has added to the problem, the Norodom Ranariddh Party said in a statement demanding the Ministry of Finance act.
Gasoline prices have risen to 4,400 riel per liter, more money than many impoverished Cambodians earn in a day.
The Human Rights Party said it would hold demonstrations if the government did not lower taxes on imported fuel. Taxes on harmful substances like cigarettes and alcohol could be raised instead, the party urged.
Neither government spokesman Khieu Kanharith nor Finance Minister Keat Chhon could be reached for comment Tuesday.
Fuel company magnate Sok Kong said oil prices were high globally, leading to the high prices in Cambodia.
"Now you want me to reduce the price?" he said. "How can I reduce it? Now the price is how it is. I am not the only one. It's the whole world."
Economist Kang Chandararoth said the only way to lessen the impact of high fuel prices was to work to lower the costs of other goods.
The price of gasoline has nearly tripled this year, putting a heavy burden on some of Cambodia's poorest, while the prices of other goods continue to rise.
Poor regulation from the government in keeping costs down has added to the problem, the Norodom Ranariddh Party said in a statement demanding the Ministry of Finance act.
Gasoline prices have risen to 4,400 riel per liter, more money than many impoverished Cambodians earn in a day.
The Human Rights Party said it would hold demonstrations if the government did not lower taxes on imported fuel. Taxes on harmful substances like cigarettes and alcohol could be raised instead, the party urged.
Neither government spokesman Khieu Kanharith nor Finance Minister Keat Chhon could be reached for comment Tuesday.
Fuel company magnate Sok Kong said oil prices were high globally, leading to the high prices in Cambodia.
"Now you want me to reduce the price?" he said. "How can I reduce it? Now the price is how it is. I am not the only one. It's the whole world."
Economist Kang Chandararoth said the only way to lessen the impact of high fuel prices was to work to lower the costs of other goods.
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