Syrians heave rushed to government subsidy centers in Damascus, after austerity measures were announced by the government amid a further decline in the value of the local currency.
Heating fuel, petrol and cooking gas have been in short supply over the past two years in regime-held areas, prompting the government to take a series of measures to limit consumption.
Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali Ghanem banned cars with large engines from receiving subsidized petrol, in a new move that reflects Damascus’s need to cut down expenses and the consumption of oil derivatives.
Oil and Mineral Resources Minister Ali Ghanem said there would no longer be subsidized fuel for cars with engines larger than 2,000 cc as of Sunday.
Individuals or companies with more than one vehicle were also no longer allowed to benefit from the subsidies.
He stressed that the revenues will be used to invest in “service and development projects” that he didn’t specify.
Those included in the decision shall now buy fuel for their cars.
Before these measures, any vehicle owner was entitled to 100 liters of subsidized petrol per month.
With state help, a 20-liter tank refill used to cost SYP5,000 (around $7). Now those hit by the new rations will have to pay SYP9,000 (around $12) for the same volume.
The decision sparked criticism on social media.
Government officials have always blamed the fuel crisis on economic sanctions imposed by several Arab and Western countries, preventing oil tankers from arriving in the country.
US sanctions imposed on Tehran, Damascus' most prominent supporter, have exacerbated the fuel crisis in Syria.
Ghanem said Syria needs 146,000 barrels of crude oil per day, whereas it produces just 24,000.
It used to produce almost 400,000 barrels per day before civil war broke out in 2011. But nine years of conflict have ravaged production, and seen US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) seize control of the largest oil fields in the country.
Syria is in the grips of a severe economic crisis that has seen the value of the local currency plummet to record lows on the black market, and food prices double in a year, according to the World Food Program.
It noted that food prices increased by 107 percent in one year.
The rise in prices comes at a time when most Syrians live below the poverty line, according to the United Nations.
