Media: diesel excise duty in Lithuania ahead of the Baltic States, Poland, Germany and Finland

After a significant increase in fuel excise duty rates since the beginning of last year, Lithuania currently has the highest excise duty on diesel compared to neighbouring countries, ahead of Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Germany and Finland, according to „Verslo žinios“.

Lithuania is currently outperformed only by Estonia, Germany and Finland in terms of the current excise duty on petrol.

The increase in diesel excise duty has made Lithuania the most expensive country in the region, with diesel prices over the past year around 20 cents per litre higher than in Estonia or Poland and nearly 10 cents per litre higher than in Latvia. 

According to the portal, the excise duty on petrol per 1,000 litres in Lithuania amounts to €562, diesel €553.5, while in Latvia it is €555 and diesel €467.

In Estonia, the excise duty on petrol per 1,000 litres is higher than in Lithuania, at €591, but the excise duty on diesel is €428.

In Poland, excise duties on fuel are significantly lower, at €427.23 per 1,000 litres for petrol and €397.7 per 1,000 litres for diesel.

Germany and Finland have higher excise duties on petrol than Lithuania, at €654.5 and €672 (1,000 litres) respectively, according to „Verslo žinios“. 

Diesel excise duty is currently lower in Germany at €470.4 and in Finland at €487 (1,000 litres). In Sweden, the excise duty on petrol is €434.05 and on diesel €358.9 (1,000 litres).

With the outbreak of military conflict in the Middle East at the end of February, oil prices have been spiking in recent weeks, pushing up fuel bills.

According to a proposal by the Ministry of Finance, a temporary reduction in the fixed part of the excise duty rate on regular diesel fuel and on labelled diesel used in agriculture is planned until mid-June.

This could reduce the final price of fuel for consumers by around €0.06 per litre (including VAT). The reduction of excise duty rates on diesel is expected to be such that the loss to the state budget due to the reduction in excise duty revenue would be compensated by the increase in VAT revenue due to the increase in diesel prices, and would therefore have no impact on the state budget.

In addition, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has opened up the possibility for member countries to release 400 million barrels of oil and oil product reserves onto the market. Lithuania has already released part of its national fuel reserves and 80,000 tonnes of fuel have been released to the market, with the aim of influencing fuel prices.

Among other measures planned by the Government to tackle the fuel crisis include the development of a fuel price monitoring tool and changes to the law on the purchase of biofuels blended into fuels.

It has also been decided that train tickets will be 50% cheaper between April and the end of May.