Urso: 'Companies have taken up the call, fuel prices are falling'

There is a long-distance clash in the government between Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini and the Minister for Enterprise and Made in Italy, Adolfo Urso. "I count on Minister Urso to summon the oil companies and show them the pump price and the production price. Because the companies are very quick to increase prices when there is a problem, but they are much slower to reduce prices when prices fall,' said Salvini, speaking at a League gazebo in Milan. "And so if we were also forced to make an economic and fiscal intervention on the maxi profits of banks, oil and energy companies, I would absolutely agree," he added.

From Sant'Ambrogio di Valpolicella (Verona), on the sidelines of the initiative on the value of Made in Italy exports, Urso replied: 'We note that the oil companies have accepted our exhortation to reduce fuel prices immediately, without delay, as formulated at Thursday's meeting at Mimit, as demonstrated by the drop in prices at the pump recorded in the last two days. In this, too, Italia is proving to be more effective than other European countries, as shown by the European Commission's comparison of weekly data. We hope that the negotiations will indeed allow the immediate reopening of maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz'.

Plus 88 million per week for the oil companies, plus 61 million for the State. This is the assessment of Codacons on the weight of the higher costs for high fuel prices compared to the pre-conflict period in the Middle East. "Considering average daily fuel consumption on the ordinary network alone," writes the consumers' association, "Italians are paying over 148 million euros more per week for their supplies. According to the association, the oil companies and the entire fuel chain collect about 88 million euros per week more than two months ago; the State, through VAT and excise duties, about 61 million euros more".

According to the association's calculations, the industrial price now accounts for 59.4 per cent of every litre of diesel purchased at the petrol station, (55.1 per cent on petrol), while taxes, thanks to the cut in excise duties, weigh the remaining 40.6 per cent (44.9 per cent on petrol). This means that the oil companies and the entire fuel supply chain collect approximately 88 million euros per week more than two months ago: in addition to the cost of the raw material attributable to Platts quotations, in fact, on each litre of petrol and diesel a gross margin is paid, i.e. a share that goes to remunerate all the charges related to the steps in the chain from refining to distribution, such as commissions for brokers, transporters, wholesalers and various intermediaries, up to the remuneration of plant operators, whose profit margin, however, is fixed, and varies from 3 to 5 euro cents per litre and does not increase as prices rise. To the Italian state, on the other hand, through VAT and excise duties, about 61 million euro more goes.

Codacons also analysed regional Mimit data, showing a generalised drop in fuel prices throughout Italy today with the average price of diesel at 2.166 euro/litre (-1.4 cents) and petrol 1.790 euro/litre (-0.3 cents). On the motorway, diesel costs 2.193 euro/litre (-0.8 cents), green 1.817 euro/litre (-0.6 cents). Petrol and diesel prices at the pump continue to fall. Today's data - Saturday, 11 April 2026 - from the Fuel Price Observatory of the Ministry of Enterprise and Industry show the second consecutive day of falling average prices, partly as a result of downward adjustments indicated by oil companies. Along the national road network, the average price in self-service mode is €1.785/litre for petrol and €2.166/litre for diesel. On the motorway network, on the other hand, the average self-service price is 1.817 €/litre for petrol and 2.196 €/litre for diesel.