Urban Motorists May Enjoy Fuel Discounts

Motorists in urban areas could enjoy discounts on fuel provided by petrol station operators once the system of weekly fuel price updates takes effect this Wednesday, as confirmed by the Petrol Dealers Asso­ciation of Malaysia (PDAM).

The Star reports, that the fuel discounts are in-line with the recent announcement by the Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumer Affairs Minister, Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin.

These discounts, according to Hamzah, would require prior approval by the ministry. This way, operators will have a choice to follow the ceiling prices or offer discounts for promotional purposes.

Under the new system, petrol prices will be announced on Wednesday, and prices take effect at 12.01AM, Thursday.

PDAM president Datuk Khairul Annuar Abdul Aziz comments that the rate of discounts and period of discounts are unclear at this point as operators have not been briefed on the new system.

Khairul added urban petrol station operators could offer the promotional discounts due to higher earnings but rural operators likely could not as their earnings range from RM4k to RM6k.

He comments, “An operator who is allocated 300,000 litres of petrol a month and offers a one-sen discount would see his profit go down by RM3,000. If they give a two-sen discount, they will be finished as they will have no income.”

Additionally, The Star reports that one station operator, Datuk Abu Samah Bachik, is anxious about the new system. Adding that the rate of discounts should be agreed on by the oil companies, but, worries that if similar discounts are offered by multiple companies, the discount system will be at odds with Government’s Competition act, that forbids price-fixing.