Spain brings 20 cent fuel discount to petrol drivers in October as prices keep rising

Petrol drivers in Spain are set to see their fuel discount jump from 5 cents to 20 cents a litre from October, worth up to €10 off a 50 litre tank. Diesel drivers keep the 20 cents they already get, however the help for everyone is due to shrink again before Christmas.

Petrol drivers get the biggest boost 

The government has announced that the fuel tax discount will be 20 cents a litre in October for both petrol and diesel, with the decree due to be approved at today’s Council of Ministers. Vice President and Ecological Transition Minister Sara Aagesen said the measures are aimed at protecting households and businesses from high energy prices.

For petrol drivers, that’s a big change. The discount has been just 5 cents a litre since September 1, so on a 50 litre tank the saving goes from €2.50 to €10.

Diesel drivers keep their 20 cents for now 

Diesel drivers won’t see a change in October, as their discount was already doubled to 20 cents at the start of September. That keeps the saving at €10 on a 50 litre tank, and it avoids the jump of around 24 cents a litre that the industry had warned could hit diesel at the pumps if the help ran out.

Then the discount shrinks each month 

The help then goes on on a downward slope. The discount is due to fall to 13 cents a litre in November, saving €6.50 on a 50 litre tank, and to just 6 cents in December, or approximately €3. 

It’s delivered through a cut to the hydrocarbons tax, and according to reports it includes a safeguard clause linked to inflation in case prices get worse. The government chose a fixed cut per litre rather than the VAT reduction that hauliers and petrol station owners had asked for.

Prices are still climbing

The timing matters because pump prices haven’t stopped rising, with petrol averaging around €1.86 a litre and diesel €1.83 last week after weeks of increases. Petrol drivers might even ask themselves ‘is it worth waiting until October to fill up?’, and as long as prices don’t jump further first, holding off until Thursday October 1 would save around €7.50 on a 50 litre tank.

Fuel is also the main reason Spain’s inflation jumped to 4.9 per cent in September, its highest since February 2023, with energy prices up 21.6 per cent on a year ago. Core inflation, which strips out energy and fresh food, has crept up to 3.1 per cent too, so drivers aren’t the only ones feeling it.

With October offering the biggest discount of the three months, it’s worth keeping an eye on pump prices before you fill up, and on the official decree once it’s published.