Petrol station owners expect fuel prices to rise again if international oil prices stay at current levels for a few more days, and some may soon be unable to order fuel, the head of their association said on Tuesday.
Savvas Prokopiou, president of the Pancyprian Association of Petrol Station Owners, said the slight drop in pump prices in recent days could be followed by fresh increases because oil has stabilised at higher levels. International prices, which were around 100 to 102 dollars over the previous fortnight, are now around 110 to 112 dollars, he said. He added that he hoped positive geopolitical developments would ease the situation and bring prices down.
If the increases continue, some station owners will not be able to order fuel because the high price will make selling it unprofitable, Prokopiou warned. He said this had already happened at petrol stations in other countries.
“The huge problem is for us, the traditional petrol station owners,” he said, raising the question of whether their businesses can survive.
Calls for support
Prokopiou called on the government, and the Finance Minister in particular, to consider an additional subsidy for heating oil, saying the support announced so far is inadequate. He also called for help for professionals and businesses for whom fuel is a main operating cost, saying the price rises are significantly affecting their work.
Discounts
The association represents about 60 per cent of petrol stations countrywide, Prokopiou said. The remaining 40 per cent are company-owned and other privately owned stations, which he said receive more than twice the discount given to association members.
He argued that the companies are better able to absorb the extra costs, while the higher discounts help keep the other private stations viable. Association members, by contrast, receive a fixed discount of about six cents, whether fuel costs 1.30 or 2.30 euros, he said.
Card charges
Association members operate on a profit margin of 2.9 per cent, while charges on payments by Visa or corporate Visa cards range from about 1.7 to 1.85 per cent, according to Prokopiou. The rate stays the same, but the amount station owners pay rises with the price of fuel, particularly on corporate card transactions, he said, meaning more expenses with no extra income.
Higher prices also increase the capital stations need to buy stock, and the amounts owed to them by customers who pay monthly.
Receipts
Prokopiou welcomed an initiative by Democratic Rally (DISY) parliament member Nikos Georgiou, who chairs the House Energy Committee, to regulate by law the information printed on petrol station receipts, saying it was a long-standing demand of station owners. He expressed reservations, however, about whether the changes would show exactly where consumers’ money goes.
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