Consumer gas prices in Argentina are set to rise between 47 and 54 percent for households and 55 and 66 percent for small and medium businesses, following a public hearing on the matter held Thursday.
Once determined by gas distributors at the end of March, the proposed hikes will take effect from April.
The final increase will also depend on the exchange rate of the dollar and February’s wholesale price index.
It will bring the year-on-year increase in gas prices from winter 2017 to 110 percent for households and 120 percent for small and medium-sized business, Ambito Financiero noted.
Gas distributors shared their calculations at a public hearing on Thursday where National Ombusdwoman Mariana Grosso and her City counterpart Alejandro Amor refused to estimate the eventual price of gas for consumers.
“Using the future value of the dollar as a reference is as useful as using the weather forecast”, Amor said ironically.
In August 2016, the Supreme Court ruled against a hike in gas prices and insisted future increases should be “reasonable, progressive and gradual”.
Juan José Aranguren’s Energy Ministry claims energy prices for consumers will start to drop in 2019.
-TIMES/PERFIL
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