Saudi Arabia plans to hike fuel prices by 80% from January

Saudi Arabia will raise domestic gasoline prices by about 80 percent and jet fuel prices to international levels in January, as part of plans to gradually eliminate energy subsidies, Bloomberg reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.

While jet fuel prices will be raised to international levels in one go, prices of gasoline and other fuels like diesel, kerosene, and heavy fuel oil will be incrementally increased over several years, one source said.

Gasoline and other fuel prices will not reach international levels until 2023 at the earliest, but this could potentially happen by 2025, the person said.

Plans to roll back energy subsidies in Saudi Arabia come as part of wider reform efforts under the Vision 2030 initiative announced last year, which aims to diversify the Kingdom’s economy and tackle the budget deficit caused by the slump in oil prices.

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Labor and Social Development is set to announce today the details of the Citizen’s Account program, intended to compensate low- and middle-income Saudis for austerity measures through cash payments.

Officials have said that the payments under the program will begin before the next round of subsidy cuts.