Once the tax discount is over, diesel continues to rise: it has reached 2.261 euros. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni then uses moral suasion to ask for 'full' compliance with the price cap from the companies and underlines that the government has 170 million in cash for mobile excise duties which it is evaluating when to use.
Meanwhile, Eni is moving away from the maximum threshold it has set for itself and, going against the market trend, is reducing the price of its diesel by 4 cents. In the EU, however, the debate on the taxation of extra profits from energy companies is heating up. The film of the day begins with the Ministry of Business recording the decrease in the cost of petrol and a further increase in that of diesel. On ordinary roads, in 'self service' mode, petrol costs on average 2,040 euros per liter (2,243 on Tuesday), diesel 2,261 (2,244 euros on Tuesday). Yesterday the tax discount of 6.1 cents on diesel provided by the government ended, and the four major oil groups operating in Italy (Eni, Ip, Q8 and Tamoil) raised their price caps in the same way. Eni's price is now 2.25 euros for diesel (was 2.19) and 1.99 euros for petrol (unchanged). The ones raising the diesel average are the small operators, the "white pumps", who do not have the size to offer discounts: their average price is 2.28 euros per litre. Today, however, Eni has decided to lower the cost of its diesel by 4 cents, bringing it to 2.21 euros per litre. According to the energy site Staffetta Quotidiana, this is a commercial move, following a sharp drop in international prices of refined products.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who in mid-September had committed to continuing the tax discounts from 6 October with the mobile excise duty mechanism, returns to the topic. "We are always ready to intervene again, particularly with the mechanism of mobile excise duties - said the Prime Minister -. As of September we have around 170 million that can be spent for this objective. We are asking ourselves whether it is more effective to spend them at this moment, when there are containment measures in any case, or to keep them as a reserve when those measures end. It also depends on the holding of the cap. Let's see what happens in the next few hours". The prime minister thus adds a certain moral suasion towards companies to her commitment. "Eni shares the needs expressed by the Prime Minister - the Italian group responds promptly - and is applying, and will apply, a responsible commercial policy" to "maintain prices at a sustainable level".
The price cap "will have the function of containing any peak levels". The problem is not just Italian, so much so that to avoid excessive increases, the member states of the International Energy Agency have announced from Paris that they are "ready to release further strategic reserves (of fuel, editor's note) if necessary" and Paris has announced the release of 10 million barrels of diesel from its strategic reserves. Meanwhile, the rotating Irish presidency of the EU has put the hypothesis of taxing the extra profits of energy companies back on the table. Speaking at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, Minister Thomas Byrne said that, given "the prices of fossil fuels are rising endlessly and the cost of living has increased significantly, it is necessary to mitigate the negative consequences for citizens and we must tax energy companies". We will talk about it on Friday at Ecofin in Luxembourg. The energy issue obviously worries businesses and heats up political debate. Assoaeroporti is looking with concern at jet fuel prices: there are no quantity problems - he highlights - but fuel accounts for 31% of flight costs and could lead to price increases and cancellations. The alarm also comes from Confindustria Ceramiche which underlines how energy costs "bring the sector to its knees". "What is the Meloni government doing to put an end to the geopolitical crises, to the wars that are having profound repercussions on the pockets of Italians? The answer is nothing - attacked the dem leader Elly Schlein -. We have insisted on taxing the extra profits of energy companies, rather than relying on their clemency and good will, and to reactivate the mechanism of mobile excise duties".
