In brief

• Four lobbying organizations of the oil industry refused to take part in drafting a fuel price cap in Germany, fearing an accusation of illegal price collusion.
• The CDU/CSU and SPD coalition agreed to introduce a fuel price cap from January; until the end of the year, a reduction of the tax on petrol and diesel remains in force.
• The SPD demands that Economy Minister Katherina Reiche speed up work on the price cap model.
• The Greens want a special levy on oil companies that recorded high profits in the billions.

Associations see a risk of price collusion

Four lobbying organizations of the oil industry informed the federal Ministry of Economics that they will not take part in drafting the price cap. Joint coordination of positions by associations and companies may be considered illegal price collusion – according to a letter first reported by the portal Politico (Bericht - Mineralölverbände verweigern Mitarbeit an Spritpreisdeckel – Deutschlandfunk). According to the associations, after analyzing everything, no model suitable for the German fuel market is visible.

Coalition plans a cap from January

The CDU/CSU and SPD agreed that a fuel price cap will take effect from January (Tankstellen: Was macht der Spritpreisdeckel? SPD fordert Tempo von Reiche – ZEIT ONLINE). Until the end of the year, the fuel tax reduction, which lowers taxes on petrol and diesel, still remains in force.

SPD presses for faster action

The SPD demands that Economy Minister Katherina Reiche accelerate work on this project. With a tight schedule and the industry's negative stance, pressure on the ministry to present a concrete model will grow.

High profits of oil companies

At the same time, the Greens are calling for a special levy after European oil companies recorded high profits in the billions. The debate on the price cap will therefore probably also concern whether companies should contribute to the costs through such a levy.