Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca announced on Wednesday, December 28, that the fuel subsidy scheme will no longer be extended after January 1, 2023. According to him, the authorities will only suspend the subsidy, with plans to introduce it again “if the prices will have an evolution that exceeds the purchasing and supporting power of the citizens.”

“If initially, the measure did not seem to be one that would produce effects, now, at the end of the year, we can see that it was a good measure, the price of fuel reaching a level seen before the government’s decision, and we have to announce that it will end starting January 1,” prime minister Ciuca said.

The Romanian government approved at the end of June the emergency ordinance aimed at mitigating the high fuel prices in Romania. The scheme provided a compensation of RON 0.5 per litre - half of the subsidy (RON 0.25) covered by the state budget and half as a commercial discount applied voluntarily by gas station chains.

The scheme was initially supposed to be in effect for three months and was extended until December.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Flynt/Dreamstime.com)