Diesel fuel has decreased in gas stations by up to 36 bani per liter, following the entry into force of the emergency ordinance by which the Government reduces the excise duty by 30 bani/liter.
However, the reduction comes on top of a price already increased in the previous days, so the actual impact felt at the pump is greatly diminished, as shown by data analyzed by Profit.ro.
Different reduction from one company to another
At OMV Petrom and SOCAR stations, standard diesel has decreased by approximately 36 bani per liter, in line with expectations following the excise duty reduction.
On the other hand, Rompetrol implemented a smaller reduction, of about 23 bani per liter. The explanation is that the fiscal reduction was partially offset by the increase in international quotations, which added approximately 13 bani to the price.
The resulting prices indicate a decrease to around 9.93 lei/liter at Petrom stations and 10.02 lei/liter at OMV stations, while at Rompetrol the level remains higher, as the cited source indicates.
Gasoline has not decreased, and at Rompetrol it has actually increased
Regarding gasoline, the situation is even clearer: in most networks, the price has remained unchanged. Moreover, Rompetrol increased the gasoline price by 9 bani per liter, reaching approximately 9.2 lei/liter.
Meanwhile, premium diesel at Rompetrol had an unusual evolution: after previously dropping below the standard price, it suddenly increased by 1.25 lei, reaching over 11 lei/liter.
Recent price increases have "eaten up" the reduction
Although the excise reduction was supposed to bring a significant decrease, price increases made before the ordinance came into force largely canceled out the effect.
If the reduction had been applied to last week's price levels, diesel would have dropped to approximately 9.63 lei/liter at Petrom stations and 9.72 lei/liter at OMV stations, about 30 bani below current levels.
Comparatively, on March 2nd, diesel cost 9.99 lei/liter at Petrom and 10.08 lei/liter at OMV, just a few bani higher than current prices, despite the fiscal intervention.
What the Government ordinance provides
The Government's adopted regulatory act provides for:
- reducing the diesel excise duty by 30 bani/liter (36 bani including VAT);
- introducing a solidarity tax for oil producers, applied when the Brent oil price exceeds 70 dollars/barrel;
- limiting to one price change per day at gas stations.
The ordinance came into force immediately, although industry associations had requested a three-day grace period for implementation.