Draft 2027 finance bill would require parliament approval for fuel rises

In Algeria, the finance committee of the People's National Assembly (APN) has proposed that any rise in petrol and diesel prices needs prior parliamentary approval, according to ObservAlgerie.

The amendment would change article 218 of the draft 2027 finance bill (PLF 2027). That article already allows fuel prices to be revised when needed, but it sets no amount, date or mechanism.

According to ObservAlgerie, citing the El Khabar newspaper's edition of 31 October, the committee wants deputies to play a bigger role in pump price decisions and to avoid revisions without prior debate.

For motorists, the proposal would not change prices by itself. It would mean that any future rise needs parliament's agreement first. The source says this is a committee proposal, not a rule already adopted, so the bill is not yet law.

Mohamed Arkab, Minister of State and Minister of Hydrocarbons, said when he appeared before the finance committee on 17 October that the government had no plan to raise petrol and diesel pump prices at this stage. He also said that including this option in the bill did not mean a rise would follow automatically.

The explanatory memorandum of the bill gives higher production costs as a reason, along with the need to keep refining and distribution finances balanced and petroleum products available. It also says the state still covers a large part of the gap between real costs and the prices paid by consumers.

The source gives no amount or date for any price rise, and the dates in this article are as ObservAlgerie gives them. The APN has announced that the plenary examination of the bill is due to begin on Monday, 2 November.