Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has ordered a reduction of the excise tax on fuel to offset the price increase planned to take effect this week.
Smotrich's office stated that "the Finance Ministry is holding professional discussions to formulate the exact discount threshold and mechanism. The Finance Minister intends to sign the order as soon as possible so that the price reduction goes into effect within the coming days."
Earlier, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure Fuel and Gas Administration announced a 16 aguras-a-liter price increase, set to take effect overnight between Monday and Tuesday. 95-octane unleaded gasoline will rise to 8.25 NIS per liter (31.23 NIS per gallon) at self-service pumps. The additional full-service tariff will also increase by one agura, to 26 aguras per liter.
Bat Sheva Abuhatzera, head of the Fuel and Gas Administration at the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, detailed the reasons for the tariff changes. She explained that the increase resulted from several factors: an approximately 6% rise in global gasoline prices, partially offset by a roughly 3% weakening of the dollar.
Together, these two factors added approximately 10 agorot to the price per liter. In addition, the Israel Tax Authority’s index-linked adjustment to the excise tax added around five agorot, while the semiannual update to the marketing margin added another agora. Combined, these changes resulted in a total increase of 16 agorot for September.