A quick intervention to curb increases in pump prices. Yesterday evening, March 18, the Council of Ministers approved the decree law on fuels with a package of time-limited measures to contain the increase in prices linked to the international crisis.
Excise duty cut and immediate price reduction
The measure introduces a cut in excise duties which entails a reduction of approximately 25 cents per liter on petrol and diesel for a period of 20 days, with immediate effects on refueling costs. A decrease is also expected for LPG, equal to around 12 cents per litre.
The government’s choice was to intervene in a generalized way, without resorting to the fuel bonus linked to the social card, initially hypothesized but then excluded from the definitive text.
Aid for hauliers and fisheries
Among the measures included in the decree is a tax credit for hauliers on the purchase of diesel, with a percentage that will be defined with a subsequent provision.
For the fishing sector, a 20% tax credit on fuel is provided for the months of March, April and May, with a total allocation of 10 million euros.
Strengthened anti-speculation controls
The decree also introduces a more stringent supervision system along the entire supply chain. For three months, oil companies will have to communicate their recommended selling prices to the Ministry of Business on a daily basis, under penalty of fines equal to 0.1% of turnover.
Mister Prices, Financial Police and Antitrust are on the scene, called to monitor any anomalies and distortion phenomena. In the most serious cases, reports are also provided to the judiciary to verify any speculative maneuvers.
Temporary measures and possible extension
The total allocation is less than one billion euros. The measures are temporary in nature, but the government has reserved the possibility of extending them if the crisis linked to the international context does not subside.
The decree, approved quickly, aims to contain increases and avoid further price tensions, with constant monitoring of market trends.
Costs and cuts
The excise duty cut approved yesterday by the Council of Ministers costs 417.4 million in 2026 and 6.1 million in 2028. This can be read in the text of the decree published in the Official Journal. The other measures envisaged, the tax credit for road transport and that for fishing, are worth 100 million and 10 million euros respectively. Much of the coverage is ensured by cuts to ministries.