RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – On March 24, the Paraguayan Senate approved a bill for selling fuels at low prices by compensating these costs with taxes on fuel imports.
The initiative establishes these conditions for common diesel and 93-octane gasoline and empowers the government to increase the tax rate mentioned above to amortize these costs, adds a local newspaper.
According to ABC Color, the increase in the tax on fuel imports will match the decrease in tariffs, especially when international fuel prices improve.
The Senators’ disposition implies discarding the government’s initial proposal to the Legislative, about a so-called Fuel Price Stabilization Fund, based on bank loans.
The parliamentarians exchanged earlier with the Ministers of Finance, Industry, and Commerce to approve the bill on collecting preferential prices by Petróleos Paraguayos.
They also received criteria from leaders of the protests blocking and closing main roads in the country, demanding price reductions.
The compensations included in the text subscribed by this Congressional body will only protect the sale of common diesel and 93-octane gasoline, Ángel Zaracho, of the Truckers Federation, reminded them.
Last week the truckers rejected an official decision to lower the payment per liter of both products by PYG 500 (US$0.07) and asked for its extension to the other fuels.