Morocco: Fuel price caps opposes government to competition council

On the same day the competition council issued a scathing report criticizing the government’s plan to set caps on fuel prices, governance minister responded by discarding the report as political.

The council said capping fuel prices would not be beneficial to the Moroccan economy and citizen’s purchasing power.

The council also called for more structural reforms including developing competition in the fuel distribution market and relaunching the refining industry in the country, where the sole refiner that used to supply the market with 64% is out of service since 2015.

But the council irked the government when it pointed to the dysfunctions that marred the liberalization of fuel prices in 2015.

“The competition council is a constitutional institution that should not assess governmental decision,” Daoudi told local media, stressing that the capping will still take place.

Morocco imports the bulk of its fuel needs further subjecting local prices to fluctuations in international markets.