Gasoline and diesel fuel prices have increased over the past month. According to the consumer price index, gasoline and diesel fuel prices increased by 4.4% and 3.9% in September compared to August. Compared to the same period last year, gasoline prices in Armenia fell by 1.1% and diesel prices rose by 1.5% in September, while compared to December last year, prices fell by 0.1% and rose by 3.2%, respectively.
A representative of a gasoline retailer told Factor.am that a liter of Premium gasoline currently sells for 520 drams, while a liter of Regular gasoline sells for 500 drams. The economist attributes the price increase to rising import prices, which in turn is linked to the gasoline shortage in the Russian Federation. Economist Aghasi Tavadyan emphasizes that one of the reasons for the rise in diesel fuel prices is the fuel shortage in Russia, as demand increased during the harvest season. On the other hand, he notes, Ukraine is attacking Russian oil facilities, which is also affecting volumes. “Last year at this time, the situation was similar, but there were no attacks on oil wells on this scale. Furthermore, for about three months, the Russian Federation imposed restrictions on gasoline exports. These restrictions, of course, did not apply to EAEU countries, but they did apply to gasoline sold, as well as to Armenia,” he noted. Tavadyan emphasizes that, despite competition in the gasoline market in our republic, new players have emerged, and diesel fuel prices in our country are approximately 30 percent higher than in neighboring Georgia. Furthermore, he notes, problems encountered by fuel importers and sellers in Georgia this year also impacted gasoline prices, with Armenian drivers having to pay Georgian customs officials for passage through the customs checkpoint. “For example, in the case of liquefied gas imports, according to various rumors, a fee was demanded for truck releases. This created certain corruption risks. The Georgian side, of course, denied this, but Gevorg Papoyan stated that such a problem existed. This led to a 10-20 drams increase in the price of gasoline,” the economist noted. Incidentally, amid this situation, Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan’s office announced that the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) Council had decided to temporarily zero out customs duties on fuel imports. The decision was made on September 30 and will come into effect shortly. The EEC Council decided to zero out customs duties on the import of motor gasoline, aviation fuel, diesel fuel, marine fuel, and other types of gas oil until June 30, 2026, inclusive.
2025-10-08