Saudi Arabia: fuel prices coming of age

Journal Article · Wed May 30 04:00:00 EDT 1984 · Energy Detente; (United States)

OSTI ID:6842084

Of the three oil-exporting, developing countries traditionally with the cheapest domestic fuel prices, only Saudi Arabia remained with deep subsidies intact after Mexico, and then Venezuela, raised prices to consumers. Now Saudi Arabia has doubled petroleum-product prices to consumers, and also increased internal crude oil prices. With domestic consumption of gasoline up 315%, diesel consumption up 626%, and crude oil consumption up 195%, since 1975, economic-development engineers say their deliberate plan for using oil to rapidly build infrastructure and local manufacturing capacities has succeeded. However, the Third Development Plan for the period 1980-1985 was designed with higher oil exports in mind than have been possible in the past three years. Lost revenues had to be at least partially restored by charging more to Saudi consumers, to maintain economic development near expected levels. Nevertheless, higher consumer prices - still the lowest in the world - are just a drop in the bucket for government budgeting. Development of its human resources, its petrochemical industry, and returns from safe investment havens abroad, continue to be the long-term solutions for the most valuable use of Saudi Arabia's crude oil and petrodollars. This issue contains the fuel price/tax series and the industrial fuel prices for May 1984 for countries of the Western Hamisphere.

• OSTI ID: 6842084
• Journal Information: Energy Detente; (United States), Journal Name: Energy Detente; (United States) Vol. 5:10; ISSN EDETD
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English and Spanish

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
020500 -- Petroleum-- Products & By-Products
020700* -- Petroleum-- Economics
Industrial
& Business Aspects
29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
294002 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Petroleum
298000 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Consumption & Utilization
ASIA
CARBONACEOUS MATERIALS
COAL
DATA
DIESEL FUELS
ENERGY CONSUMPTION
ENERGY SOURCES
FLUIDS
FOSSIL FUELS
FUEL CONSUMPTION
FUEL GAS
FUELS
GAS FUELS
GASES
GASOLINE
INDUSTRY
INFORMATION
LIQUID FUELS
MATERIALS
NATURAL GAS
NUMERICAL DATA
PETROLEUM
PETROLEUM PRODUCTS
PRICES
SAUDI ARABIA
STATISTICAL DATA