Fuel Stations Owners Union: Israel Currently Supplies the West Bank with 3.5 Million Liters of Fuel Instead of 4.5 Million Liters

Exclusive to SadaNews: The Fuel Stations Owners Union confirmed that the supply of fuel to the Palestinian territories from the Israeli side has not been interrupted due to the war so far, but acknowledged a decrease in the quantities supplied.

Samir Hadid, head of the Fuel Stations Owners Union, stated that the Israeli side supplied approximately 3.5 million liters of fuel (diesel and gasoline) today, Sunday, out of an average daily supply of 4.5 million liters, noting a significant decrease in the quantities supplied in recent days.

In response to a question from "SadaNews" about whether there is a shortage in the quantities at fuel stations in the West Bank, Hadid said: "Yes, there is a shortage, and the most affected governorates are Hebron and Bethlehem."

Hadid ruled out that the reason for this shortage is the effects of the war ongoing in Iran or what Israel is facing from Iranian bombardment, stating: "The disruption in the supply is due to the financial siege that Israel is imposing on the Palestinian Authority and its withholding of clearance funds," noting that fuel station owners pay in cash to the General Petroleum Corporation, but the Israeli side talks about not fully supplying the cost of the commodity.

Regarding his expectations for fuel prices starting next month, amid rising global fuel prices, Hadid said: "We are waiting for the General Petroleum Corporation to announce the prices for the new month, but prices are directly affected by what is decided in Israel."

The Israeli Institute for Environmental Energy had predicted that fuel prices in Israel would rise by 12.5% at the beginning of next April if the Israeli Ministry of Finance does not approve a reduction in the production tax, raising the price of a liter of 95 octane gasoline to 7.90 shekels.

It is noted that estimates indicate that the number of fuel stations in the West Bank reaches approximately 240 stations, while the local consumption volume is around 90-100 million liters of fuel monthly, two-thirds of which is diesel and one-third is gasoline.

The price of a liter of fuel in Palestine is among the highest in the world as it is completely imported from Israel, and most of the price is tied to taxes rather than the original price.

The "excise" tax, which is a fixed tax on every liter of fuel sold in the Palestinian and Israeli markets, constitutes the largest share of the final price for the consumer, as the rate of this tax reaches 100% of the price, in addition to the value-added tax estimated at 16%.

According to data from the Ministry of Finance and Planning, the revenue from the petroleum tax during the year 2025 amounted to about 3.42 billion shekels out of a total of 10.53 billion shekels of total clearance tax, meaning it constitutes 32.5% of the total clearance tax but has not been transferred to the public treasury due to the occupation withholding those funds.