Why are we paying between 12 and 15 euros more for average tank of petrol and diesel in Spain this August?

The increase in fuel prices in Spain in the middle of the holiday season has been influenced, in part, by the joint decision of Russia and Saudi Arabia to reduce oil production by one and half a million barrels per day, respectively, leading to a significant impact on the global fuel market.

The Moure Group, a holding company founded in 1996 with a presence in the energy and carwash sector, explained how this measure "has restricted the supply of oil on the market, which has contributed to the increase in international fuel prices", generating an "additional burden" for all those travellers who are on holiday in August.

Moure Group general manager, Manel Montero, said: "The price of a barrel of Brent crude, which we use as a reference in Europe, has exceeded the barrier of 80 dollars after experiencing two increases in recent weeks. The decision of Russia and Saudi Arabia to continue reducing oil production in August has been a determining factor in the rise in the price of fuel.

"Motorists will pay between 0.19% and 0.21% more for petrol and diesel, respectively. If we go back and compare with 2019, we are currently paying between 12 and 15 euros for an average tank more, depending on the type of fuel," Montero said.

In addition this factor is the annual summer rise in fuel prices due to the increased demand; there are some 6.9 million journeys on the Spanish road network this month.

Ultimately, although the trend for the coming months is for fuel prices to continue to rise, current prices are still considerably below the peak reached in June 2022 during the energy crisis triggered by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. "At that time, the price of petrol was 17.88% higher than the current value, while diesel was 24.2% above current levels. Filling an average tank of petrol costs 88 euros compared to 102 euros last year. An average tank of diesel costs 79 euros, some 22 euros less than last year, which represents a significant saving," the Moure Group general manager said.