Diesel: the discount has been scrapped. And Eni has updated the price cap: here’s what’s changing

After more than two months, the discounts on diesel are coming to an end. In Monday’s Official Gazette – the last day on which the 6.1-cent-per-litre discount on diesel was in force – there is no interministerial decree between the Ministry of the Economy and the Ministry of the Environment to activate the mechanism for variable excise duties using the VAT windfall.

Taking into account the discount that has been in place until now, from today, Tuesday 6 October, prices could rise by around 6.1 cents per litre. As for petrol, however, nothing will change: since the summer, the government has decided not to intervene on unleaded petrol, as it is cheaper (just over two euros per litre, on average, in Italian cities).

According to the latest figures from the Ministry of Enterprise, the price of diesel could rise to around 2.3 euros per litre: a figure that is, however, lower than the highs reached last week, namely 2.369 euros.

The fall in prices is not linked to the stabilisation of the situation in the Middle East or to a drop in oil prices, with Brent remaining at around $100 a barrel – and, in fact, prices are at record highs in many countries, including the United Kingdom, where diesel has reached £2.35 per litre. In Italia, prices have been falling for a week, following Eni’s announcement that it would impose a price cap and the other major oil companies’ decision to follow suit.

With regard to Eni’s price cap, the cap on diesel – as the company had clarified in its initial press release of 28 September – was revised following the end of the excise duty cut. Consequently, it has risen by 6.1 cents, bringing it to 2.25 euros per litre. The price cap for petrol, however, remains unchanged at 1.99 euros.