- The support is withdrawn in stages, which avoids a sudden jump in fuel prices and fixes from the start when it ends.
- The decree also provided for a progressive reduction of the electricity generation tax, which falls on generators.
- With the end date known, hauliers and fleet owners can plan the autumn: rates, routes, surcharges and cash.
On 29 June 2026 the Council of Ministers approved a new royal decree-law of more than €1.8 billion. It included a cut in the hydrocarbons tax of 15, 10 and 5 cents per litre in July, August and September respectively, and a progressive reduction of the electricity generation tax. The combination of both measures aimed to contain the price of energy at two different points in the chain.
It was the second package of measures against the energy crisis, after the one in March. This time the design provided in advance for its own withdrawal, something that makes planning easier but demands that the calendar be taken seriously. For those who consume a great deal of fuel or electricity, the key is not only how much is saved in summer but how the business prepares for the moment the support disappears. In cost management, knowing when a support ends is as valuable as knowing its amount.
A staggered cut
The cut in the hydrocarbons tax was 15 cents per litre in July, 10 in August and 5 in September. It is a gradual withdrawal of support: it avoids a sudden jump in fuel prices and makes clear from the outset when the support will end. The successive steps allow behaviour to be adjusted without suffering a sudden change in prices. It is, in short, a way of accompanying the transition to prices without support.
From the consumer’s point of view, this formula has a psychological advantage: the price rises bit by bit, without a cliff that sends it up all at once. From the state’s point of view, it makes it possible to limit the cost and to prevent a measure conceived as temporary from becoming permanent through inertia. Whoever knows the calendar can anticipate costs month by month and reflect them in budgets.
The electricity generation tax
The decree also provided for a progressive reduction of the electricity generation tax. It is a tax that falls on generators, and cutting it aims to contain the cost of electricity on the wholesale market, with an indirect effect on consumers’ and companies’ bills. It is, therefore, an indirect lever, whose exact effect on the bill cannot be measured with a single figure.
It is an effect to be weighed with caution. A tax on those who generate is not necessarily passed straight through to the bill, and the final price depends on many other factors: the market, contracts and the generation mix. It is therefore sensible to wait and check how much of the cut really reaches the bill before counting on it in a plan.
Planning with a known end date
The staggered cut announced its own withdrawal. For hauliers and companies with fleets, it was an opportunity to plan the autumn knowing exactly when the support ended: adjusting rates, reviewing routes, negotiating fuel surcharges with customers and preparing cash for the moment fuel returns to its full price. Whoever does so in advance will reach the autumn with updated rates and customers informed.
In practice, it is worth reviewing the fuel price update clauses in transport contracts, calculating the impact of each step on the cost per kilometre and talking to customers before October arrives. It also helps to leave a cash cushion to absorb the difference in the first months, if the market does not allow it to be passed on at once. Self-employed hauliers, with less financial room, should be especially careful with this calendar.
Support with an expiry date is managed better than support taken as permanent.
This article is general information. It is not legal, tax or investment advice, and it does not take anyone’s particular circumstances into account.
