VENEZUELA: The Cost of the World’s Cheapest Gasoline
By Humberto MárquezInter Press Service
December 29, 2008
Excerpts from report:
"Gasoline is practically given away here for free," said Finance Minister Alí Rodríguez, who has done stints as energy minister, secretary-general of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and president of the state oil monopoly PDVSA.
"It is obscene to sell our gasoline this way. We might as well give it away!" President Hugo Chávez said in a January 2007 speech, when he ordered studies to be carried out into the possibility of raising domestic gas prices. However, such a move would be almost tantamount to political suicide in Venezuela.
...
The low price of gasoline "is essentially a regressive subsidy, because most of the fuel is consumed by private vehicles belonging to the middle and upper classes, while the poor use the deficient public transport system," said [Ramón] Espinasa.
"Eighty percent of the gasoline is used in private vehicles, which transport just 20 percent of the population, while 80 percent of citizens depend on public transport, which consumes 20 percent of the gasoline. It is a backwards case of Robin Hood," said economist José Luis Cordeiro...
(click here to view entire report)
posted by Justin Delacour | 9:37 AM
1 Comments:
I ususally tip the guy who pumps it more than it costs for the gas. It is kind of twilight zone like, $2-50 at the offical exchange rate to fill a Toyota Hilux, at the blackmarket rate it's less than 60 cents.
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