Alex Trelinski
FILLING up a car with fuel at a service station is cheaper this summer in Spain with prices back to 2021 levels.
The latest figures published on Wednesday showed that a motorist pays an average of just under €1.49 per litre of petrol in the first week of August.
That is 7.3% less than in the same week last year and a big 21.9% below the amount in 2022- the year of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
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Diesel has seen a 2.8% annual fall, with litre costing €1.43 compared to €1.89 in August 2022.
Speaking to the El Pais newspaper, Jordi Perdiguero, professor of Applied Economics at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, said prices are linked to the cost of a barrel of oil.
“In 2020 we passed the pandemic and the lowest peak of consumption; and since 2022, with the war in Ukraine, the price of a barrel of Brent was above 120 US dollars at the peak of the conflict, but now it has fallen and is around 67 dollars.”
At current prices, filling a medium tank (55 litres) would cost €81.70 (down €6.50 on 2024 levels) for petrol, while diesel comes in at €78.80- down from €81 a year ago.
Perdiguero said the summer season always brings a slight price hike due to a rise in demand.
“Companies know this and there is always a cent or two cents increase in price,” he stated.
Spain’s fuel prices are below the European average but in Bulgaria a litre of petrol costs €1.22 while Malta charges €1.21 for diesel.
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