Several airlines are questioning an increase in the price of kerosene in the West Indies, denouncing an “in our opinion illegal practice,” the National Aviation Federation and its trades (Fnam) said on Thursday.
Kerosene prices increased by 15% at the beginning of June, with Fnam denouncing at this time a “brutal decision”, “without any justification linked to the increase in oil prices”, taken by the French authorities and the Société anonyme de raffinerie des Antilles (Sara), the only fuel supplier in the Antilles.
The Fnam “and the associated companies in question” presented last summer “a kind appeal to the prefect that did not receive a favorable response,” the federation told AFP on Thursday.
Sentencing expected in 2024
“Therefore, the airlines in question filed a claim for compensation with the administrative court at the beginning of December 2022,” specifies the Fnam, according to which “a judgment is expected in the first quarter of 2024.”
“Exchanges between the parties will continue until then,” adds the professional organization.
The Fnam calls for “an end to this practice, which we believe to be illegal, of equalizing the price of kerosene and the price of gasoline in the West Indies.” For her, a reduction in the price of gasoline should be financed by the State budget and not by “a penalty for air passengers.”
La Sara had responded in June that “if the price of kerosene did not rise, this would mechanically cause an additional increase in prices at the pump, affecting all consumers, including those who do not take the plane.”
Source: BFM TV
