MADRID − Spain will lower highway speed limits, cut train ticket prices and use more bio-fuel under an emergency energy-saving initiative because of soaring oil prices brought on by unrest in Libya, an official said on Friday.
The Libyan rebellion has sharply reduced exports from the oil-rich nation, and about 13 per cent of the oil Spain consumes comes from Libya.
Deputy Prime Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba said Spain’s energy supply is not in danger, despite shutdowns by oil companies operating in Libya, but the national
energy bill will rise significantly because of the sharply higher petroleum prices.
He said a €10 per barrel increase in oil prices will cost Spain an extra €500 million.
“This is what happens when we depend so much on oil. It is normal that the price goes up when there are problems,” said 28-year-old student Pablo Regadera.
Spain’s energy-saving measures will be formally approved next week and take effect on a temporary basis on 7 March.
The maximum speed limit on Spanish highways is 120 kilometres per hour (75 mph) and this will come down to 110 kph (68 mph). The government will rush to print new signs to alert people of the change.
“We are going to go a bit slower and in exchange for that we are going to consume less gasoline and therefore pay less money,” Perez Rubalcaba said. For instance, he said, a car running on petrol will use 15 per cent less fuel at the new, lower speed limit.
Madrid taxi driver Carlos Cuellar Benito, 47, doubted that the measure would make any difference. “I think that it is nonsense. A change of 10 kilometres an hour is not going to save anything, it is not logical.”
The government will also order a five per cent
reduction in fares on commuter and middle-distance trains by the state railway system RENFE.
“We are going to wage a major campaign to promote public transport, which is always welcome but which in this case is absolutely necessary for us,” said Perez Rubalcaba.
Finally, oil companies will also have to add more bio-fuel to the gasoline and diesel they produce − from the current mandatory 5.8 per cent proportion, up to seven per cent, the deputy prime minister said. (AP)