Germany's sharp rise in fuel prices following the military escalation in the Middle East has triggered a political backlash against oil companies. The Left party is demanding that excess profits be skimmed off, the Greens are calling on the Federal Cartel Office to investigate the price jumps, and the CDU has stopped short of ruling out market intervention. The energy industry, meanwhile, has moved to defend itself.
The war involving Iran has driven crude oil prices sharply higher. Iran controls the Strait of Hormuz, the critical waterway connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman, the Arabian Sea, and the Indian Ocean. Roughly one-fifth of the world's daily oil output passes through this route. On Sunday, three ships were attacked in the strait, and numerous shipping companies suspended transits through the passage.
The gas station association, which represents station operators and owners across Germany, accused oil companies of raising prices by more than necessary. Spokesperson Herbert Rabl said major fuel suppliers were adding a further two to three percent on top of the price increases they themselves faced as a result of the war.
By Tuesday afternoon, a litre of Super E10 petrol averaged €1.895 nationwide according to the ADAC, more than six cents higher than Monday morning. Diesel rose even more sharply, climbing around twelve cents to €1.921 per litre.
Michael Kellner, energy policy spokesperson for the Greens in the Bundestag, told the Rheinische Post on Tuesday that prices at the pump would continue to rise. "I fear this is the beginning of a price spiral," he said. "It is the Cartel Office's job to examine whether these price jumps are justified."
Left party leader Ines Schwerdtner accused energy companies of pocketing record profits at consumers' expense. "We have seen this before after the attack on Ukraine, oil and gas companies made massive excess profits worth billions while many workers did not know how they would pay their next heating bill," she said. Schwerdtner called for a windfall profit tax.
The ruling black-red coalition has left the door open to price-dampening measures. "I do not want to rule anything out," said CDU parliamentary manager Steffen Bilger in Berlin, adding that the coalition would monitor the situation and consult further with coalition partner the SPD. Following the Ukraine war, the previous government introduced a fuel price relief measure for drivers in 2022.
The Fuels and Energy Trade Association, which is responsible for refineries and branded gas stations in Germany, defended the early price increases. A spokesperson said the rises followed standard commercial principles, arguing that only by doing so could companies earn enough to purchase petrol and diesel products that had themselves become significantly more expensive. Supply security, the spokesperson added, "unfortunately cannot be had independently of world markets."
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