Letter to EU Colleagues
Gas Prices: Marterbauer Calls for Excess Profit Tax
Five EU finance ministers, including Markus Marterbauer (SPÖ), have called on the European Commission to consider imposing an excess profits tax on energy companies. This comes amid persistently high fuel prices.
“In light of current market distortions and fiscal constraints, the European Commission should swiftly develop a similar EU-wide tax instrument based on a solid legal foundation,” states a joint letter from the EU finance ministers. They referred to a temporary instrument for 2022. The measure should be adopted in addition to national initiatives.
The letter was signed not only by Austria’s Finance Minister Markus Marterbauer but also by his counterparts from Germany, Portugal, Spain, and Italy. The ministers cited high oil prices as the reason for an excess profits tax, noting that they have placed a significant burden on Europe’s economy and its citizens. “It is important to ensure that this burden is distributed fairly,” the letter states.
Criticism of Oil Companies
As a result of the war in Iran and the de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil shipments pass, energy prices have risen sharply. Critics accuse oil companies of raising prices very quickly but passing on falling prices on international markets noticeably more slowly. In Austria, fuel prices have risen significantly more than in most neighboring countries. Yesterday, Friday, a liter of diesel cost an average of 2.209 euros nationwide, and a liter of premium gasoline cost 1.788 euros, according to the latest figures from the regulatory authority E-Control.
Hattmannsdorfer: “Pricing is international”
Economy Minister Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer announced on Saturday that a study by the Institute for Advanced Studies (IHS) had shown that pricing is determined “on the international market and not nationally.” Therefore, EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen must act quickly. The study is the “latest insult to motorists,” commented the FPÖ. “The biggest driver of prices sits in the government itself! Fuel tax, the nonsensical CO₂ penalty tax, and VAT on top of that—these are the main causes of the price explosion for diesel and gasoline, which is driving Austrians further and further toward poverty (...)”, said Transport Spokesperson Christian Hafenecker.
Pricing is determined on the international market, not nationally. Gasoline and diesel are traded based on international quotations.
Wirtschaftsminister Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer
In 2022, the European Union introduced a temporary special levy on excess profits of certain companies in the fossil fuel sector. At the time, the levy amounted to 33 percent on the portion of profits exceeding the average profit from 2018 to 2021 by more than 20 percent. According to EU finance ministers, consideration should be given this time to including the foreign profits of multinational oil companies in a more targeted manner.
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