Methanol imports to ČR triple since 1999

Prague, Sept 11 (CTK) - Czech imports of methanol, which is poisonous and can be used in production of bootleg alcohol, has grown in the last few years and compared with 1999, the value of its imports has roughly trebled, according to the Czech Statistical Office (CSU) database.

Since the end of last week, the number of cases of death or hospitalisation of people who have drunk methanol sold as alcoholic drinks has grown. Seven people have already died of methanol poisoning and a further two dozens are in hospital with serious health problems, including blindness.

Methanol worth Kc210m was imported to the Czech Republic in 1999, while last year the value of its imports reached Kc631m and in the first seven months of this year Kc406m.

Most of the methanol is imported from Russia and Germany. Imports of ethanol, spirits and liqueurs moves at around Kc2bn annually.

Methanol is used in the chemical industry as a solvent, antifreeze additive, alcohol denaturating agent and fuel additive, for example. Methanol poisoning has been very rare in the Czech Republic thus far.

According to data from the Union of Alcohol Producers and Importers (UVDL), some 55 million litres of spirits are sold in the Czech Republic annually. Some experts estimate bootleg alcohol production at up to a quarter of the total production of alcoholic beverages in the Czech Republic.

Excise duty on spirits has grown from Kc195 a litre of pure alcohol in 1997 to the current Kc285 a litre, which has raised the motivation to produce bootleg spirits.

UVDL statistics show that after the tax hike, domestic market in spirits dropped by 6 percent in 2010 and by 4 percent last year. In the first half of this year, the fall accelerated to 7 percent.

The state loses over Kc1.6bn annually in taxes due to the sales of untaxed alcoholic beverages, according to UVDL estimates. Some Kc1.3bn is lost in excise duty and over Kc300m in VAT.

Customs officers in the Czech Republic uncovered illegal transport or distribution of 21,020 litres of alcohol and 328,104 litres of alcoholic beverages this year. They found suspicious alcohol in 50 cases and suspicious spirits in 748 cases, General Customs Directorate spokesman Jiri Bartak told CTK Tuesday.

This year, they found shortcomings by 3,701 litres of alcohol and 50,865 litres of spirits.

Czech imports of non-denaturated ethanol, spirits and methanol:

Year Imports of non-denaturated ethanol, liqueurs and spirits (Kc bn) Imports of methanol (Kc mil.)
2012* 1.133 405.6
2011 1.985 631.3
2010 1.774 571.9
2009 1.926 439.6
2008 2.091 715.7
2007 2.082 771.7
2006 1.892 818.8
2005 1.795 579.3
2004 2.017 516.5
2003 1.256 463.9
2002 1.134 354.9
2001 1.198 494.9
2000 1.065 377.0
1999 1.105 210.3

* data for Jan-July

Source: Czech Statistical Office

Revenues from excise duty on alcohol (Kc bn):

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
7.1 7.1 7.0 6.5 6.8

Source: Customs Administration