Montevideo, Jun 19 (EFE).- Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez announced a cut in fuel-oil prices on Monday, saying that gas and natural gas prices will remain stable.
“We are cutting fuel-oil prices, we will make it official this week. We said weeks ago that we were monitoring official prices, above all energy costs. We have studied the issue and we will reduce fuel-oil (prices),” Vazquez told reporters.
“Everything else will remain unchanged, there will be no price hikes for gas or natural gas,” the president said.
Industry and Energy Minister Carolina Cosse told reporters her Cabinet department would study a proposal from the opposition National Party to lower fuel prices.
The opposition party presented a plan to the Vazquez administration to reduce costs and implement administrative changes at state-owned oil company ANCAP that could lead to a drop in fuel prices.
National Party Sen. Alvaro Delgado and his advisers submitted a package of tax credits and other measures that would yield a reduction of eight pesos ($0.28) per liter in fuel oil prices and six pesos ($0.26) per liter in gasoline prices, the El Pais newspaper reported.
Cosse said her office would consider the proposal along with others since it was necessary to weigh different components in the measures.
“All proposals need to be studied comprehensively and, as much as possible, we need to work with international prices for the benefit of consumers while, at the same time, protecting the company’s (ANCAP) bottom line,” Cosse said.