- Title: BELGIUM: PETROL SHORTAGE CREATED BE OIL COMPANIES CLOSES MANY PETROL STATIONS.
- Date: 25th March 1974
- Summary: 1. CU newspaper headlines 0.08 2. GV Empty oil refineries with parked tankers in yard (3) 0.30 3. GV & CU Closed petrol station with car pulling out 0.51 4. TV Street scene 1.00 5. SV's People crowding onto buses (2) 1.12 6. GV Buses pulling away 1.15 7. GV People getting on buses and buses leaving (2) 1.31 Initials SC/246 SC/3.00 Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 9th April 1974 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
- Country: Belgium
- Reuters ID: LVA1GWUR374EKOC989AQ6H8WUUBB
- Story Text: Motorists in Belgium today (Monday, 25 March) began to feel the bite of petrol shortages, as major oil companies continued their ban on refining in an attempt to pressure the Government into allowing steep price increases.
Many petrol stations were closed because of lack of supplies and those that were open were limiting customers to 100 or 200 Francs (one or two pounds sterling) worth.
The oil industry has told the Government that recent spectacular increases in crude oil prices should be passed onto the consumer. The companies are demanding minimum price increases of 50 per cent.
But the Government, which has only caretaker status while another one is formed following elections on 10 March, wants to leave the problem over until the beginning of May for the new administration to handle.
The Cabinet met this morning to discus the oil companies' claims, but failed to reach a decision.
Newspapers in the capital, Brussels, said the country faced a complete industrial shutdown and economic chaos unless the refineries were back in action within a week or so.
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