Q8 also lowers prices. The oil company announces that it has accepted “the Italian government’s invitation” and will apply, starting from 1 October, “a price cap on petrol and diesel, confirming its commitment to supporting consumers”. The price cap will last 30 days and “will be applied with a modular approach”.
“Q8 Italia will appropriately support managers and partners to guarantee the economic sustainability of the entire supply chain” reads the company note. “A decision consistent with the responsible behavior concretely adopted by the company also in recent months, aimed at protecting consumers and maintaining its competitiveness”.
In a “particularly delicate moment for the energy system”, declare Q8, “characterised by an unpredictable volatility of the international market, and for consumers, Q8 Italia therefore renews its commitment to doing its part, combining attention to prices, industrial investments, innovation and social responsibility”.
The size of the discount is not yet clear
It is not yet clear what the cap applied by Q8 will be. The oil company’s move comes after the price cap introduced by Eni which set a maximum limit of 1.99 euros for petrol and 2.19 euros for diesel. A measure then also adopted by Ip (Italiana Petroli) which aligned the tariffs with those of Eni, even if in this case the cut may not necessarily be homogeneous in all plants. Eni can count on 3,847 distributors spread across the national territory, which on average sell around 600 million liters of fuel every month. IP instead has around 4,500 points of sale. As for Q8, there are approximately 2,800–3,000 distributors throughout the peninsula.
Pichetto Fratin and the cut in excise duties: “It will continue until October 6, then we’ll see”
Q8’s decision on fuels “was a wish we made and I welcome it very positively” commented the Minister of the Environment and Energy Security Gilberto Pichetto Fratin on the sidelines of the Euro-Mediterranean Water Forum in Rome.
Pichetto Fratin then added that tax discounts on diesel (which today are worth 6 cents per litre) will continue “certainly until 6 October, then it will be evaluated. I think everyone realizes that at the moment we have an international framework that must lead us to make decisions just in time”. When asked if the discounts will continue after October 5th and there will not be the announced selective measures, Pichetto reiterated “at the moment I can tell you yes, but there are still 10 days left before the 6th, and in 10 days on an international level anything can happen”.
Petrol and diesel prices today
According to the Ministry of Business, today the average price of fuel in ‘self-service’ mode along the national road network is equal to 2.126 euros per liter for petrol and 2.335 euros for diesel. In just two days on the ordinary network, the price of diesel decreased by 4.2 cents per litre, rising to -7.6 cents on the motorway, while petrol fell by 3.3 cents on the ordinary network, and by 7.4 cents on the motorway. Now with the Q8 move, average prices are destined to fall further.