THE POLITICS OF REFORM145per gallon for regular gasoline, almost 90 percent more than they paid
in 2015.
The increases appeared to have had the intended effect on demand.
After a decade of nearly 10 percent yearly consumption growth, trans-
portation fuel demand dropped by 6.6 percent in 2016 and another
5 percent in 2017. Motorists switched en masse from premium gaso-
line to lower- priced regular fuel, and diesel demand saw a pronounced
drop of more than 7 percent in 2016 and 2017 (see figure 9.2).
As of 2018, the politically sensitive residential sector remained insu-
lated from increased power prices.^23 State- society relations continued to
deteriorate, and the regime— like its counterparts across the GCC— has
brooked less patience for dissent since the Arab Spring. Activists have
been intimidated and jailed and demonstrators greeted by riot police and
arrests.^24 Even so, senior energ y policy officials say that Oman’s residen-
tial electricity tariffs are not sacrosanct. “It’s being discussed,” said Zaid
al- Siyabi, the former head of exploration and production at Oman’s Min-
istry of Oil and Gas. “For higher consumption, maybe the subsidies will
disappear.”^25
5,000
010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00045,00050,000Total fuel M-91 gasoline M-95 gasoline DieselThousands of barrels2015
2016FIGURE 9.2 Domestic sales of fuels in Oman.
Drivers in Oman switched from premium (91) to (95) regular gasoline and
consumed less gasoline overall in 2016.
Source: Oman National Center for Statistics and Information, 2017.