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Frequently Asked Questions

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Shell receives many questions about fuel prices. In this section we address your frequently asked questions.

 

What comprises the retail price of fuel?

What taxes are applied to fuel?

Why have fuel prices increased compared to previous years?

Why are fuel prices cheaper in some other countries?

What are the components of your operating costs?

What are the impacts of increasing traffic between Mainland China and Hong Kong?

There has been an increasing number of seizures of illict fuel by Hong Kong law enforcement? What is the impact of such cases on Hong Kong?

How does the US exchange rate affect gasoline prices in my country?

Why is Shell V-Power more expensive?

Why do service stations seem to be charging the same fuel prices? Does this indicate collusion?

Why does the list price of fuel not change at exactly the same time as the cost of crude oil?

Can Shell use its influence to bring down the price of crude oil?

Why did the hurricanes in the US increase fuel prices?

What comprises the retail price of fuel?

The price of fuel at the retail station comprises the product cost, government excise duties and taxes, land cost, operating costs (include distribution, marketing, salaries and utilities at service stations etc) and net margin.

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What taxes are applied to fuel?

Government imposes and collects excise duties from every litre of fuel sold via petrol filling station. The duty for unleaded petrol is HK$6.06 per litre which accounts for 30% to 40% of the fuel list price. For diesel, the duty is currently zero.

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Why have fuel prices increased compared to previous years?

The costs of crude oil and refined product have risen and therefore fuel prices have been adjusted accordingly to reflect the higher costs. The cost of crude oil and refined product are influenced by a number of factors, such as increasing oil demand, limits in refining capacity that impact supply, seasonal demand for product and extreme weather events such as hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico.

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Why are fuel prices cheaper in some other countries?

The price of fuel in different countries is affected by:

 

  • Cost of buying finished product in the country
  • Government excise duties
  • Land costs

  • Fuel specifications

  • Currency fluctuations

  • Other operating costs

 

Using Hong Kong as an example, a substantial proportion of fuel price, about 60%, is attributed to land cost and government excise duties and taxes.

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What are the components of your operating costs?

Our operating costs include distribution, marketing as well as salaries and utilities at service stations. Furthermore, Shell always manages health, safety, security and environment (HSSE) as critical parts of our business, and we invest heavily in implementing environmental and safety measures at our stations. For example, we have implemented “Vapour Recovery Unit” to recover fuels vaporised during re-fuelling and unloading. Facilitating this process requires a significant amount of investment and maintenance costs.

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What are the impacts of increasing traffic between Mainland China and Hong Kong?

A direct impact is a reduction of fuel demand in Hong Kong as Mainland fuel prices are lower than those of Hong Kong. Unlike Hong Kong, where prices are subject to market conditions, fuel prices in the Mainland are regulated by the government. They are also significantly cheaper than Hong Kong because of the Mainland's duty-free fuel policy and its lower-standard fuel specification (e.g. sulphur content in Mainland diesel can be 40 times higher than in Hong Kong). The lower price in Mainland China has become an attractive pull for both commercial and private drivers. The result is a significant reduction of fuel demand in Hong Kong. However, the lower-quality fuel with its higher emissions also contributes to poorer air quality in Hong Kong.

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There has been an increasing number of seizures of illict fuel by Hong Kong law enforcement? What is the impact of such cases on Hong Kong?

The crackdown indicates the severity of the problem of illicit fuel, which has a direct impact on the local market because it lowers the demand for fuel in Hong Kong as motorists look for cheaper sources. The significant gap in price is made possible because illicit fuel suppliers have "nil" investment in the safety measures of their petrol filling stations. It is believed that some of the illicit fuel supply is bought cheaply from the Mainland. Tax-free industrial fuel with sulphur content much higher than the standard required in Hong Kong is also said to have been a source of cheap illicit fuel. The use of high-sulphur-content fuel by Hong Kong motorists has adversly impacted Hong Kong's air quality.

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How does the US exchange rate affect gasoline prices in my country?

Since the world’s major crude oil market is generally traded in US dollars, any variation between the exchange rate of a country’s currency and the US dollar will impact the cost of buying crude oil in that country. This concern is not as critical for Hong Kong as the Hong Kong dollar is currently pegged to US dollar but the fluctuations in US Dollar do have impact on the final landed product cost.

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Why is Shell V-Power more expensive?

Shell V-Power is a premium fuel with a unique formulation and special additives that are designed to give you better performance. Shell V-Power is a superior quality fuel benefiting from extensive research and development and Shell’s partnership with Ferrari.

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Why do service stations seem to be charging the same fuel prices? Does this indicate collusion?

The petrol stations of different oil companies are located very closely to each other. Any changes in list prices initiated by one company will be closely and quickly followed by others, thus resulting in closely aligned list prices. The situation reflects the intense market competition that exists now.

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Why does the list price of fuel not change at exactly the same time as the cost of crude oil?

Crude oil and the refined products are in fact products of two different markets. The fuels products we provide in Hong Kong are refined light products whose prices are affected by factors such as regional demand, running capacity of the refinery and market speculation. Crude oil prices are subject to different set of factors, including increase in oil demand - especially from China, India and the US - as well as limits in refining capacity and security of supply from the Middle East.

 

In setting our prices, we endeavour to absorb increases in import costs rather than immediately pass these costs along to consumers. Therefore, there are fewer price adjustments as a result.

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Can Shell use its influence to bring down the price of crude oil?

No.  Shell only produces around 3% of the world’s oil. The majority of the crude oil that is used in our refineries to make finished fuel products is bought on the open market. The price of crude oil is influenced primarily by:

 

  • Increasing oil demand - especially in China, India, US
  • Limits in refining capacity
  • Security of supply - particularly the current political instability in the Middle East
  • Currency fluctuations
  • Market speculation
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Why did the hurricanes in the US increase fuel prices?

Some extreme weather events, such as hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico, can disrupt oil refineries thus reducing availability of refined product.  Such reductions and speculation about availability of refined products can cause volatility in refined product prices globally.

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