Red diesel for the Albanian fishermen

The Albanian government has decided to remove the excise tax on heavy oil used in fishing boats. According to new rules, the Albanian fishermen are going to pay around ALL 70 per litre of heavy oil, known in Albania also as D2. Until now, fishermen had to buy fuel at retail prices. Later, only after they had sold their catch, they could apply for reimbursements of heavy oil taxes paid out. However, the reimbursement was very bureaucratic and slowly increased production costs. The decision on taxes is designed to slash production costs for the entire fishing sector. Now, Albanian fishermen are going to be supplied with oil based upon the same rules as their competitors in the European Union.
According to calculations conducted by the Albanian Ministry of Finance, the fuel in Italy constitutes 37 percent of the total production cost. British fisherman claim that fuel amounts to 50 percent of their production cost. The Albanian fishermen complained that heavy oil comprised more than 70 percent of their production cost.
During the last ten years, there have been important investments in fisheries. Albania has 268 fishing boats in its fleet based in its four main harbours: Durr촩, Vlora, Sh쯧jini, and Saranda. The fishermen’ association claims that the registered value of the Albanian fishing fleet is around Euro 50 million. Some 1,400 people are employed as full-time fishermen. Another 1,000 people provide in-shore services for the fishing fleet, from maintenance to bookkeeping. The fishing industry generates, in total, around 15,000 workplaces. The industry exports to the European Union goods valued at Euro 16 million per year. (Tirana Times Staff)