In a strong statement made by Hussein Al-Yamani, the Secretary-General of the National Union of Petroleum and Gas and the head of the National Front to Save the “Samir” Refinery, he confirmed that the current situation of fuel prices in Morocco reflects clear exploitation by sector operators, as their profits remain excessively high at the expense of Moroccans’ purchasing power.
Al-Yamani explained that if the government decided to re-impose caps and set fuel prices according to the rules that were in place before the end of 2015, the price of a liter of diesel should not exceed 9.83 dirhams, and gasoline 10.92 dirhams, based on the average international prices and the exchange rate of the dollar during the first half of October 2024. However, he noted that prices at distribution stations reach 11.80 dirhams for diesel and 13.70 dirhams for gasoline, meaning operators are making additional profits of up to 2 dirhams for diesel and 2.78 dirhams for gasoline.
Al-Yamani added that these exorbitant profits amount to 8 billion dirhams annually, despite what he described as repeated attempts by some parties to normalize Moroccans with these figures.
The union official pointed out that analyzing the components of diesel prices shows that only 38% of the price reflects the cost of crude oil, while the remaining 60% is distributed between operators’ profits (22%) and taxes, refining, and delivery costs.
Al-Yamani called on the government to take concrete measures to reduce prices by cutting distributors’ profits, restarting the “Samir” refinery, and reviewing the heavy taxes imposed on fuels.
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