Government monitoring petrol prices to ensure there is no profiteering: Tan See Leng

Singapore

SINGAPORE'S antitrust authorities are keeping a close watch to ensure petrol companies do not profiteer from the recent surge in crude oil prices that has occurred after war broke out in Ukraine, said Second Minister for Trade and Industry Tan See Leng on Thursday (Mar 10).

At the same time, the government is prepared to put in place further measures to safeguard Singapore's energy security and assist affected businesses if needed, amid concerns of spiraling costs for firms, Dr Tan said in Parliament.

One such initiative is the availability of longer-term fixed-price electricity contracts for business consumers, announced by the Energy Market Authority (EMA) on Thursday.

Sembcorp Power, Keppel Electric are now offering long-term fixed price plans to consumers with an average monthly consumption of 4-50 megawatt hour (MWh).

These price plans come with a longer contract duration ranging from 6 months to 3 years with the electricity rate for the longer contracts priced at 25 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh).

EMA said this is lower than the electricity rate for the Temporary Electricity Contracting Support Scheme (TRECS) at 39.9 cents/kWh for March 2022.

"We encourage eligible consumers without a retail plan to consider these contracts for greater price certainty," EMA said in a statement.

TRECS could also be extended beyond May if needed, Dr Tan said last week. The scheme was introduced in December for large electricity consumers who want to be on retail price plans.

Meanwhile, the government also has a suite of measures to help firms cope with higher costs, including the small business recovery grant and temporary bridging loan programmes, he told Parliament on Thursday.

Electricity prices are likely to remain elevated or increase even further, said Dr Tan, with the deepening crisis in Ukraine further exacerbating the global energy crunch.

Crude oil prices, already on the climb in recent weeks, crossed the US$100 mark after Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb 24.

Early this week, Brent hit a high of US$139.13 per barrel the highest in nearly 14 years, as the crisis deepened.

As of Wednesday, all petrol grades in Singapore are now at least S$3 per litre, according to petrol price tracker Fuel Kaki.

Responding to a parliamentary question from Sembawang GRC MP Lim Wee Kiak, Dr Tan said while pump prices are set by the market, the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) keeps a close watch to ensure an open and competitive market.

"If there is evidence of anti-competitive behaviour, such as coordinated price increases, CCCS will investigate and take firm enforcement action under the Competition Act," he noted, adding that well-informed consumers are also a "key deterrent" against unreasonable pricing.