Belarusian gas stations are slowly running out of fuels. – In Minsk, situation is still stable, but we received information from the province, that you cannot buy gas anymore from private gas stations. – Fiodor Sukhav informed Belsat. He participates in a social project “For a car”,
Sukhav stressed that lack of fuel in other parts of the country, affects drivers in Minsk too. To buy gas from the state-owned company Bielarusnafta’s gas stations they have to wait in line of 30-40 cars.
Last week, a private gas stations A-100 halted sales of popular in Belarus 92 RON gasoline for few days. Today, main Belarusian fuel distributor “Gazprom-Bialnaftprodukt” informed that it will not continue to sell fuels for cash, which is a major obstacle in a country where few people use credit cards.
Tatsiana Manionok, an economic commentator of magazine „Belarusians and Market” thinks, that fuel deficit occurred due to growing demand in border areas, where drivers from neighboring countries come to buy cheaper gas. – Even after a price increase, fuel sales at the border areas still went up by 150 to 200 percent – Ms. Manionok told Belsat. A restriction imposed on foreign drivers which requires them to pay for gasoline in dollars or euro only, managed to decrease slightly demand, but – according to Manionok – not enough to avoid another price increase.
Since the beginning of the year, Bielnaftachim – a state-owned fuel monopoly, has already increased gas prices three times. According to the experts, sales for the domestic market brings losses, and the only income comes from the export.
Belsat
