Market participants are asking to lower the limit to expand the number of buyers.
The Committee for Developing Competition and Protecting Consumer Rights has established a limit on the daily sale of AI-80 gasoline at the commodity exchange, Spot reports referring to the market participants.
On October 17, the Antimonopoly Committee introduced a limit on the sale of AI-80 gasoline to petrol stations in the amount of 10 tons per day. The committee noted that this requirement is temporary.
In response, petrol station representatives sent a letter to the president’s reception with a request to reduce the daily limit on gasoline sales from 10 to 4 tons. According to them, the daily production of AI-80 gasoline in the republic averages 150 tons, and 30 to 34 private petrol stations participate in exchange trading. As a result of the introduction of a daily limit, the number of gasoline buyers on the exchange was halved – to 15 petrol stations.
“This, in turn, has led to rising prices in all regions, causing inequality and consumer dissatisfaction,” the letter reads.
Trading participants report that the established limit forced some petrol stations to close, while others that were able to purchase gasoline on the exchange had queues of many kilometers long. Reducing the limit to 4 tons will allow all private gas stations to purchase gasoline on the exchange.
The press service of the Commodity and Raw Materials Exchange confirmed that the Antimonopoly Committee has set a daily limit on the sale of AI-80 gasoline. However, the exchange emphasized that the problem is not related to the size of the limit, but to the volume of daily supply, which must be increased to meet demand.
