Oman plans to cut LPG subsidies

Muscat: Oman plans to cut government subsidies for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), Salem bin Nasser Al Oufi, undersecretary of the Ministry of Oil and Gas told journalists here on Wednesday.

He was responding to an agency report, which said that the government would cut state subsidies for LPG soon.

“There was always a discussion for the last five years to cut state subsidies for LPG for both commercial and industrial entities,” he said in response to a Times of Oman question on the sidelines of the fifth Oman Economic Forum here on Wednesday.

“Discussions are going on to set a market price for LPG for the industry and commercial entities, but nothing has been approved yet,” Al Oufi added.

Cutting subsidies would raise the cost of industrial units as several industries, including cement, steel and ceramic tiles, in the Sultanate depend on LPG.

According to International Monetary Fund’s data, Oman shelled out $7.3 billion on all forms of energy subsidies last year.