Syria will offer cheaper diesel for heating, agriculture and industry, Energy Minister Mohammed al-Bashir said on Thursday, days after a fuel price hike triggered the most widespread protests since the fall of Bashar al-Assad.
The move signals a partial retreat by the government after last weekend’s increases sparked demonstrations across the country, with protesters burning tyres, blocking roads and demanding the rises be reversed. About 90% of Syrians live below the poverty line, according to UN estimates.
The government had raised the standard diesel price by 40% on Saturday to 175 pounds per litre from 125, alongside increases of about 26% to 28% for gasoline and about 9% for household and industrial gas.
Bashir said diesel produced by local refineries would be sold at 115 Syrian pounds per litre for heating, agriculture and other eligible users. A second grade, secured with the help of what he described as “friendly countries”, would be sold at 150 pounds per litre for productive and service sectors and heavy machinery.
The standard grade would remain at 175 pounds per litre, while gasoline and gas prices would remain unchanged.
Bashir said the government was selling the standard diesel below cost, which he put at 206 pounds per litre. It was not immediately clear how much the subsidy would cost or how long it would remain in place.
He also announced plans to restart a group of small local electrical refineries, known in Syria as “burners”, with combined crude-processing capacity of up to 35,000 barrels per day (bpd) under the management of the Syrian Petroleum Company.
SPC chief executive Youssef Qablawi said the company was preparing an implementation plan and that fuel produced by the refineries would be distributed through designated filling stations.
The announcement came on the day Bashir had been due to face a parliamentary hearing over the fuel increases. Parliament agreed on Wednesday to postpone the hearing until Sunday at the Energy Ministry’s request, saying the ministry needed more time to prepare after lawmakers expanded the session to cover oil, electricity, water and mining.
