Russia’s attack on Ukraine and the jump in the price of oil have not made themselves felt at German gas stations for the time being.
The prices for petrol and diesel late Thursday morning were the same as the comparable values from Wednesday morning, as the ADAC announced when asked. On Wednesday, however, the nationwide daily average had already reached all-time highs of 1.750 euros per liter of Super E10 and 1.663 euros per liter of diesel.
ADAC fuel market expert Jürgen Albrecht expects rising fuel prices. “It is to be feared that yesterday’s high prices will not be the last,” he said. He tends to assume that oil prices will continue to rise. And then fuel prices would also go up. A petrol price of 2 euros on a daily average nationwide is “not to be expected in the foreseeable future,” Albrecht reassured. “For that, the price of oil would have to be of a completely different order of magnitude than it was last.”
Oil price above $100
The volatile price of oil exceeded the $100 per barrel (159 liter) mark for the first time in years on Thursday. On Thursday afternoon, the Brent price rose $6.83 to $103.67. This means that the increase in the Brent price this year has already totaled more than 30 percent after doubling last year.
The situation is similar with oil from the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) variety. Here, the price of a barrel rose by $5.15 to $97.25.
The oil price is typically the most important driver of changes in fuel prices. It only accounts for part of the costs at the pump. In contrast, large parts of the taxation and distribution costs are not dependent on the oil price, which dampens the fluctuations in fuel prices. Roughly speaking, a dollar increase in the price of oil accounts for less than a cent in gasoline or diesel.
However, the fuel price can also develop independently of the oil price, as both Albrecht and the trade association Fuels and Energy (en2x), which is responsible for refineries and branded gas stations, emphasized. The oil companies have a certain amount of leeway, said Albrecht.
Supply in Germany secured for the time being
Albrecht is not worried about the security of fuel supply in Germany. He has no signs of it. However, there are no comparable cases. The association en2x also stated that the supply in Germany was secured. There are reserves in accordance with the legally prescribed stockpiling: 90 days for mineral oil and also for the most important products. In addition, oil and oil products could also be traded by sea. However, the latter could lead to higher transport costs.
Normal operation is currently recorded, emphasized en2x. “Both the production in the refineries and the supply of the gas stations are unchanged.” According to the association, around a third of German crude oil imports come from Russia. (dpa)