The Spanish Confederation of Service Station Entrepreneurs (CEEES) has assured that gas stations are passing on "largely and generally" since this September 1 the new rates of the Special Tax on Hydrocarbons (IEH), which imply a reduction of 10 cents per liter in diesel compared to the rate in force in August.
In a public note, the employers' association emphasized that the performance of the service station sector "has been exemplary since the first day of the energy crisis caused by the war in the Persian Gulf," and recalled that this attitude has been recognized "by both the National Commission of Markets and Competition (CNMC) and the first vice president and minister of Economy, Carlos Cuerpo."
According to CEEES data, on the initial day of application of the new rates, the average retail price (PVP) of diesel A in the peninsula and Balearic Islands was set at 1.804 euros per liter, which represented a decrease of 6.2 cents per liter compared to the average PVP recorded the previous day.
The organization stressed that the new IEH rate on diesel only affects fuel purchased and delivered at the stations from September 1, which, it emphasized, "means that it is materially impossible for all gas stations in Spain to have been empty at 23:59 hours on August 31 and to have filled their diesel tanks at 00:00 hours on September 1."
For this reason, it reiterated that the tax reduction will gradually be reflected at the pumps as the stations renew their inventories and acquire product with the IEH in force in September, so that "this transfer to the PVP will occur."
CEEES detailed that already at the first hour of this Wednesday the drop in diesel continues, with an average PVP in the peninsula and Balearic Islands of 1.781 euros, which, in its opinion, confirms that as service stations replenish stocks, the average PVP will continue to decrease.
However, the employers' association warned that if the international price of diesel —reference for the purchase price of the stations— does not relax, it is very likely that, if the escalation in the markets continues, "these increases will end up consuming the linear reduction of the IEH on diesel currently in force."
In this line, the association emphasized that these strained quotes primarily affect the gas stations themselves, "who see how their supply costs soar, their risk multiplies, and their sales fall, which also forces them to reduce their margins in order to retain liters that sustain their operating accounts."
CEEES calls to maintain the reduced VAT at 10% on fuels
In light of this scenario, CEEES reiterated its demand to extend the measure that was in effect in the first aid package against the crisis from the Middle East, consisting of applying a VAT of 10% to automotive fuels, which ceased to be in force at the end of June.
Regarding gasoline, the employers' association highlighted that this Tuesday it did not rise by the five cents that the IEH increased —going from the 10-cent reduction per liter in August to 5 cents from September 1—, an increase that translates to 6.1 cents including VAT, which, according to CEEES, constitutes "the best proof that changes in the IEH do not have a direct translation to the monoliths but that there is a gradual alignment between the replenishments of stocks acquired with the new rate and the PVPs with that reduction applied."
Specifically, on the first day of validity of the new IEH, CEEES noted that the average PVP of 95 gasoline on the peninsula and Balearic Islands stood at 1.779 euros, 3.3 cents above the previous day. This Wednesday, now with the higher IEH fully operational, the average increase reaches those 6.1 cents and the price is placed at an average of 1.797 euros.