Bleeding NORA!

As one does, when one is an unemployed student and in need of desperate distractions when it is exam season, one desperately checks ones email for news tibets and humerous stories etc. So such was the case this morning when going through my email, I came across an email from the Public Jobs Commission advertising a new position within the Clerical Officer section. However, this particular job was for an Accounts i.e. Numbers, which means of course that this Arts Grad won't be going anywhere near it! :-). There is of course a twist, it was for NORA or otherwise known as the National Oil Reserves Agency.

Never heard of it? I'm not necessarily suprised I've not heard of it considering it has been in existence since 1995, when I was more interested in playing Doctors & Nurses in the Playground rather than worrying about National Oil Reserves. I am suprised though that considering all that has been ongoing within the Energy Industry over the last couple of years, that this particular QUANGO has not been more vocal about securing more Oil reserves etc.

I however have another question to ask though, according to NORA's own website,

"NORA receives no Exchequer funding..."

It Continues,

...its ongoing activities are 100% funded by a levy imposed on certain oil products
while it borrows from commercial banks in order to purchase NORA wholly owned
oil stocks. The levy (0.476 Euro cent per litre) has remained unchanged since
1995.

According to the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources' website on NORA, the oil products which this levy applies to is as follows:

The oil products involved are petrol, kerosene, gas oil, DERV and fuel oils.
Details are also provided of the quantities imported and exported, wholesale
sales and purchases, and retail sales and own consumption, together with details
of any quantities used for marine or aviation purposes. The monthly levy due to
NORA by each company/consumer is calculated by the Department on the basis of a
company's retail sales plus own consumption, less sales to other oil companies,
less disposals of fuel for marine or aviation purposes.

So I guess my own inquisitive mind has a question? If NORA is only funded by a level of some 47 cent per litre and this funding is only acquired by the montly levy on the literage of "certain oil products", which includes petrol, keresane and fuel oils, Is this then contributing towards part of the reason why fuel costs in the Republic are quiet high? If roughly 47cent per litre is taken in a levy, it has to be passed on somewhere in order for Oil companies to make money. Invariably somebody has to take the hit for the levy and I would wager that this is possibly part of the reason for high fuel costs.

I don't dispute the necessity of requiring an Agency/Department to acquire oil stocks & Oil reserves in order to secure our own position etc but I am however more curious about is, the 47 cent per litre levy comes out of the above Oil products, is this all recycled back into NORA's own accounts for future purchases of Oil Reserves? According to its 2006 figures (Opens as a PDF), within it's Profit and Loss accounts it had some €37m in a turnover, with operating costs of some €29m in the same year?! This left it with some €7m of a surplus in that year. However the year previous, its P&L accounts has a recorded turnover of some €35m with operating costs of some €28m and coming out with a surplus of €24m? Like I said I am not an accountant but even I have queries about that. Perhaps it can be explained away with rising oil prices, rising risks and a worry about the longevity of current Oil reserves. Maybe then fair enough but still like, doesn't make it any less questionable as a Public Body under the Dept of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, regardless of whether it recieves Exchequer funding or not.