The document cuts excise taxes for gasoline from EUR 213 per tonne to EUR 139.5 / Photo from UNIAN
Protesters also demand support for national producers.
Employees of Ukraine's largest oil refinery at PJSC Ukrtatnafta, are holding a peaceful rally outside the building of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, demanding adoption of a bill setting a flat excise rate on fuel, which would reduce dependence on liquefied gas supplies from Russia.
Protesters were holding posters and chanting slogans: "There is no movement without us," "Cheap domestic gasoline for Ukrainians," "Excise tax means cheap gasoline," "Lawmakers, save the oil refining industry," "Stop financing the aggressor state [Russia]," an UNIAN correspondent reported on September 16.
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Deputy Head of Ukrtatnafta's Legal Department Oleksandr Kozachuk told journalists that the company's staff decided at a meeting to hold a peaceful rally. So, about 200 workers of the Kremenchuk oil refinery took to the streets.
"With this protest camping we want to draw Kyiv residents' attention to excise taxes. We ask you to take into account the interests not only of Ukrainians who use gas, but also those who use gasoline. If the excise tax is reduced, gasoline will cost UAH 18 [US$0.64] per liter. We ask lawmakers to pass bill No. 4098 since it will also ensure national security and energy independence," he said.
Despite the resolution adopted by the National Security and Defense Council, which bans energy supplies from one source, accounting for over 30%, Russia increases its expansion into the market to almost 80% every year, Kozachuk added.
Co-author of the bill, Member of Parliament Yuriy Miroshnychenko told UNIAN that the current situation at the domestic refinery sector is critical. The number of employees at Kremenchuk oil refinery has decreased from 4,000 to below 3,000, while the volume of oil refining has halved in Ukraine since 2012.
"The bill envisages a very simple mechanism, that is we equalize the excise tax for everyone at EUR 139 per tonne of liquefied gas, gasoline or diesel fuel. Of course, there is gas [companies'] lobby that will do their utmost to block the [adoption of the draft] law. But I believe that the common sense will prevail and lawmakers will back the bill. If it is passed, the price of gasoline will drop by about UAH 3 [US$0.11], I think it is significant for each motorist. Moreover, the national budget will receive about UAH 5 billion [US$178.2 million] in additional revenue," he said.
Another co-author of the bill, MP Olerksiy Movchan, noted that the draft law gives impetus to the development of the entire industry.
"Lobbyists from Russia have always attacked the oil refining industry: they bought Ukrainian refineries and cut them for scrap metal, then manipulated excise taxes. Yesterday, we registered a bill to level excise taxes. This will give prospects for the development of Kremenchuk oil refinery and other enterprises," he said.
Movchan says the bill concerns not only one refinery, but also the entire sector of the national economy. About 17 MPs are the sponsors of the bill. If the document is not passed and nothing is changed, the domestic oil refining sector will decline and shut down, while people will lose their jobs, he stressed.
"We have no moral right to buy such large volumes of Russian gas when Ukraine is at war. We must support national producers. If we do nothing about it, the last refinery will shut down and the entire refining industry will decline. People will lose their jobs. And, it is about 75,000 Ukrainians," he added.
According to the National Security and Defense Council's resolution dated December 2, 2019, the Cabinet of Ministers had to work out the issue and decide by July 1, 2020, on the diversification of sources and routes of crude oil, fuel, natural and liquefied gas, and anthracite coal, providing delivery from one source not exceeding 30% of total supplies. However, this has never happened.