Venezuela has announced that petrol stations across the country will sell gasoline at a reduced price in exchange for the state crypto currency, Petro, supported by oil.
However, this announcement goes hand in hand with the elimination of local petrol surcharges, which will cause the price of petrol to rise from almost zero to USD 0.02 per litre.
Faced with acute shortages of petrol, on June 1, Venezuela eliminated subsidies to petrol prices.
Under the new gasoline regime, Venezuelan car owners will receive 120 litres per month for around USD 0.02 - which will essentially allow drivers to have two full tanks of petrol for around USD 1.20 per month. Motorcyclists will receive 60 litres of gasoline per month.
With a monthly salary in Venezuela of about $3.61 per month plus a food bonus of $2.89, only the subsidized gasoline allowance is 37% of the minimum wage including the food bonus.
The new Venezuelan gasoline regime will also introduce support for Petro payments at all petrol stations in the country.
However, payments cannot be made through the Petro App, the only digital wallet that supports Petro, but through the national biometric payment system "Patria", developed by Venezuela's largest bank - which is currently not compatible with the Petro application.
Access to the grant is limited to holders of identification cards
However, the subsidised allocation will only be available to citizens who have a "mother card" - an identity card that has been criticised as a sign of totalitarian control, with many citizens choosing not to apply for this card.
Venezuelans who do not have a "Fatherland Card" or are applying for more than the amount of gasoline allocated to them will have to pay $0.50 per litre.
Drivers of state vehicles still have access to gasoline for free - this creates an easy opportunity to sell gasoline on the black market. Reports indicate that on the black market in Venezuela, petrol costs as much as $4 per litre.
Despite the fact that it is one of the richest countries in the world in terms of oil, poor management and the collapse of refineries and severe sanctions on the part of the United States have led to a chronic shortage of gasoline throughout Venezuela. Currently, Venezuela is dependent on exports from Iran, which it sends to Venezuela against the USA.
