TUMPAT: An average of 22.2 million litres of diesel is sold daily at petrol stations nationwide after the government introduced the diesel subsidy rationalisation.
Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan said the figure was recorded since early this monthm which is a reduction of about 6.5 million litres per day or 23 per cent compared to last month.
In June, the average amount of diesel sold in a day was 28.6 million litres.
"After the diesel subsidy rationalisation was introduced by the government on June 10, there was a drop in the sales of the fuel at all petrol stations in the country.
"Based on the two-month records, we can conclude that the measures taken by the government have successfully reduced diesel from being misappropriated either by the industry or smuggled to neighboring countries.
"From the figure, we can estimate that the amount of leakage that can be saved is worth more than RM250 million each month," he said.
He said this during a Press conference after visiting the Pengkalan Kubor Immigration, Customs, Quarantine and Security (ICQS) here today.
Amir Hamzah said the move would also save the government around RM4 billion annually.
He added that all government agencies would continue to carry out their enforcement to check against diesel smuggling.
Asked whether the government planning to extend the rationalisation to RON95, he said the government is still studying the matter.
"It is better for the public not to make any speculation on the matter. Let the government focus on the diesel subsidy rationalisation first," he said.
On today's visit, he said it was more to understand the real situation faced by the enforcement officers especially those from the Customs Department.
"I was informed that the Customs Department and other enforcement agencies here are facing several issues related to diesel smuggling.
"The government will find the best solution to put a stop to all these issues," he added.