Badr Tadlaoui
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11:04 – December 18, 2024
The Democratic Confederation of Labor (CDT) denounced, Tuesday, December 17, during an intervention by its parliamentary group at the oral questions session in the Chamber of Advisors, the repercussions of successive increases in fuel prices since the liberalization of the market. These increases, estimates the union center, “have increased the burden on households and undermined the purchasing power of Moroccans while increasing production costs, with direct consequences on the national economy.”
For the CDT, the return to service of the Samir refinery is “essential” in order to guarantee energy security and restore balance in the fuel market. The center stressed that this strategic infrastructure “could stabilize the prices of petroleum products and alleviate economic pressures on citizens, particularly in times of crisis.”
The union center also pointed out “governmental inaction” faced with the Samir case, judging this situation “detrimental to the future of Morocco’s oil refining industry.” According to the CDT, the reactivation of this refinery would make it possible to recover a significant part of the debts, estimated at more than 80% in public funds, while reducing the financial losses linked to its shutdown.
Since Samir’s activities ceased in 2015, Morocco has lost around 3,500 direct and indirect jobs. Relaunching its activity would help revitalize the economy and improve social conditions, lamented the CDT.
For the center, the solution lies in the judicial transfer of Samir’s assets to the Moroccan state, through a mechanism for offsetting debts owed. This measure would avoid an irremediable loss of remaining human and material resources, especially since the dispute between the State and the owner of the refinery is now closed, leaving no justification for the delay in decision-making.
The CDT also warned against “structural imbalances” which affect the Moroccan energy system, threatening its ability to sustainably meet the country’s needs. She called “a national strategy to break monopolies in the hydrocarbon sector, to develop distribution and to establish a consensus around prices.” She also called for increased sovereignty over the processes of exploration, extraction and refining of petroleum resources, emphasizing that the restart of the Samir refinery “would constitute a fundamental pillar of this strategic vision.”
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