News for motorists and refueling station managers. From today, Tuesday 1st August, service stations are obliged to display, in plain sight, not only the prices of fuels, but also the national average prices, so as to allow motorists to make an easier comparison. A measure desired by the government in the petrol decree at the beginning of the year, but strongly opposed by sector operators, who had appealed to the TAR to oppose it. However, the Administrative Court of Lazio rejected the request for an urgent suspension, thus effectively giving the green light to the exposure of the double price.
Fuels, how the comparative tables work
As expected from Fuel Decree, which introduces provisions on greater transparency of prices for distributors, from Tuesday 1st August distributors will have to display national average prices alongside the prices charged in their own distributor. The average price will be calculated by the ministry with reference to the arithmetic averages on a regional basis for plants on ordinary networks and nationally for motorways. The average prices will be calculated by the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy (Mimit), which will process the data, calculating the arithmetic average, on a regional and autonomous province basis, of the prices communicated by the operators selling to the public of fuel for motor vehicles in plants located outside the motorway network, as well as the arithmetic average, on a national basis, of those communicated by operators operating along the motorway network, and takes care of their publication in an open format on its corporate website. The goal is to monitor fuel prices and protect motorists, ensuring greater transparency. By being able to compare the distributor’s price with the average price, the consumer will be able to make an informed choice.
Fines of up to 2,000 euros and suspension for repeat offenders
The service station managers themselves will have to communicate, on a weekly basis, the changes in the price charged, even in the absence of increases or decreases. Billboards with actual and average prices must be prominently displayed. In the event of violation of the obligations to communicate fuel prices, the operators risk a fine ranging from 200 euros to 2 thousand euros, which also takes into account the operator’s turnover, for the day on which the violation is committed. If the violation is repeated more than four times, even if not consecutive and within 60 days, the suspension of the activity for a period from 1 to 30 days can be ordered. This sanction is applied, with the same amounts and methods , even in the event of a breach of the obligation to display the average price. The verification of violations is the responsibility of the Guardia di Finanza, while the imposition of sanctions is provided by the Prefect.
Managers ready to appeal
Despite the no to their requests arrived from the Tar, the managers however do not give up and announce the appeal to the Council of State. Fegica and Figisc say they are determined to protect, “in every venue, the legitimate rights of a category that has no possibility of affecting the final price of fuels”. The two associations continue to maintain that the cartel of the average price “will not bring any advantage to consumers”, being moreover incompatible with the rules on competition. This thesis is also shared by the National Union of Consumers, which defines the ‘benz-billboards’ as an “unfortunate choice that will reduce competition”. Even the Antitrust, says the Unc, has not surprisingly expressed an opinion against the publication of the average price. Of a completely different opinion Assoutenti, according to which instead “everything that favors transparency and simplification in the communication of prices to consumers is positive. The light, however, should be focused on the speculations that take place before the arrival of the fuels to the distributors”.
Urso: “From tomorrow the citizens will be able to decide”
Adolfo Urso, the Minister of Enterprise and Made in Italy, spoke on the subject this morning during a press conference with the price guarantor, Benedetto Mineo, on the increase recorded in the last few days: ”Every citizen can verify for himself whether the the price of the gas station is in line with the average price and therefore can decide whether to refuel. If the price differs significantly from the average price, he can report it to the ministry”. The minister also spoke of price increases: “The price of fuel has increased by 4 cents in the last week”. “According to this morning’s data – added Mineo – the trend that had already manifested itself since mid-May in the last two weeks has accelerated: we have petrol at 1.91 cents and diesel at 1.76 cents”. But, Urso explains instead, “the recent increases, of 4 cents of the average price, are a consequence of the increase in international quotations, which in any case remain far from those prior to the moment in which we managed to convince the EU Commission on the price ceiling of the gas”. ”The average price today is 1.91 euros for petrol and 1.76 euros for diesel – concluded Urso – Tomorrow (today, ndr) with signs they will have to indicate these prices and therefore the citizen will be able to decide whether to get petrol from those who charge a higher price. It is a transparency operation. The intervention on excise duties made by the previous government was made for the sharp increase in fuel and gas on the occasion of the war in Ukraine and this is not the case today”.
Updated prices: petrol above 2 euros per litre
In the meantime, there is a new leap in the prices of refined products, which translates into a new increase in the prices of fuels, petrol and diesel, at the pump. The national average prices charged by vending machines have risen sharply: green do-it-yourself gas exceeds 1.9 euro/litre, diesel 1.76 euro/litre. For petrol we are at the highest since the end of July 2022 (when, however, the discount on excise duty of 30 cents per liter was in force, net of the discount we are at the highest since early December 2022), for diesel we are at the highest since mid-April . These are the data from the Staffetta Quotidiana survey, according to which Eni increased the recommended prices of petrol and diesel by two cents per liter on Saturday. For Q8 there is an increase of two cents per liter on diesel, for Tamoil of one cent per liter.
These are the average prices communicated by the managers to the Price Observatory of the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy and elaborated by the Staffetta, recorded at 8 am yesterday morning on about 18,000 installations: self-service petrol at 1.908 euro/litre (+17 thousandths, companies 1,917, white pumps 1,891), diesel self service at 1,762 euro/litre (+23, companies 1,771, white pumps 1,741). Petrol served at 2.042 euros/litre (+19, companies 2.088, white pumps 1.950), diesel served at 1.896 euros/litre (+22, companies 1.943, white pumps 1.802). LPG served at 0.700 euro/litre (unchanged, companies 0.710, white pumps 0.687), methane served at 1.414 euro/kg (-3, companies 1.417, white pumps 1.411), LNG 1.242 euro/kg (unchanged, companies 1.252 euro/kg , white pumps 1.236 euro/kg). These are the prices on the motorways: self-service petrol 1.981 euro/litre (served 2.227), self-service diesel 1.847 euro/litre (served 2.102), LPG 0.836 euro/litre, methane 1.540 euro/kg, LNG 1.331 euro/kg.
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2023-08-01 04:05:00
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