The Government closed in 2022 with a rise of $400 in the gasoline price (the most significant increase of the year) and $57 for the diesel, this despite the fact that President Gustavo Petro had indicated that the latter was not going to have increases in 2022, nor in the first half of 2023.
(You can also read: With the beginning of 2023, Colombians will face a rain of increases)
In accordance with what was indicated by the Ministry of Mines and EnergyThis increase responds to an inflationary adjustment that is normally made, not to a structural adjustment.
However, the cargo transport sector expressed its disagreement with this decision, which represents a «breach» of the commitment.
With this adjustment that took effect on January 1, 2023, the price of gasoline exceeded the threshold of $10,000, reaching an average of $10,167 in the 13 main cities. In the case of diesel, the update brings the average to $9,065.
Fedetranscarga meets with the Government
In this regard, Fedetranscarga, one of the unions impacted by the decision, in a meeting with the Ministry of Transportation, failed to allow the portfolio to analyze some proposals to alleviate the impact of the increase in the cost basket (in which fuel weighs more than 40 %, according to Dane).
The measures contemplate two possibilities: the non-increase in tolls or the inclusion of this sector in Decree 2497 of 2022 for a discount on the Mandatory Traffic Accident Insurance (Soat) rate. Until a determination is made, the union assures that this is not the only problem affecting the sector, but rather the announcement by the Ministry of Finance for the dismantling of the Fuel Price Stabilization Fund (Fepc) gradually until 2025.
«If today we paid for diesel at the international price, which is US$5, and the Fepc did not exist, it would cost an average of $25,000 per gallon, making the operation unfeasible,» said Arnulfo Cuervo, vice president of Fedetranscarga.
Horizon for the sector
With this panorama, experts see a hard horizon for the sector in the coming years, in which the transport of cargo and even people will be marked by this dynamic, boosting the prices of freight and tickets.
For José Stalin Rojas, director of the Logistics and Mobility Observatory of the National University, this increase and also taking into account the increase in toll prices, will put pressure on the rise in freight, which could cause an increase in the prices of some basic products from the family basket, that is, «giving a boost to inflation in January,» he acknowledges.
In the case of transporting people, for the expert the Tariff Stabilization Fund (FET), will play an important role in not passing these costs on to the end user. In this way, the director highlights the importance of transitioning to greener energies.
Paula Galeano Balaguera and Daniela Morales Soler
Portfolio Journalists
