The prospect of a sharp rise in fuel prices from next week led drivers to get ahead of the increases and top up their tanks, with no major queues reported at petrol stations in the Lisbon metropolitan area.
“Mum, why are the petrol stations always full these days?” The question comes from a child of around ten, walking past a Prio fuel station in Amadora, on the outskirts of Lisbon, with her mother.
The clock reads 11:43 and the scene is one of moderate queues — though without major congestion — largely thanks to a member of staff directing drivers to specific pumps to ease the flow.
The employee told Lusa that demand began picking up on Thursday, as price rises were being anticipated even before the Ministry of Finance confirmed the government would introduce a cut of 3.55 cents per litre in the fuel tax (ISP) applicable, on the mainland, to road diesel.
Fernando Lopes was one of the drivers who decided to get ahead of the increases and came to fill up with diesel to try to avoid the price hike expected from Monday. Despite the higher demand, he did not have to wait long. “I thought I’d have to wait much longer,” he admitted.
Leonardo Francisco, a regular at the same station, agreed: “I’ve only been here about ten minutes,” he said, adding that it felt like “not much time at all.”
At that station, standard diesel was priced at €1.694 per litre and standard petrol at €1.744 per litre. But the prospect of prices rising from next week — by around 19 cents for diesel and around 7 cents for petrol — driven by surging oil prices that hit 2022 highs in the wake of the Middle East war, is worrying some drivers.
“It is exploitation tied to the war because there is nothing that justifies an increase of this size,” said Fernando Lopes.
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“We’ll see what happens. Maybe the war will end quickly,” Leonardo added.
At the Auchan station in Alfragide — one of the busiest in the Lisbon metropolitan area — standard diesel was €1.619 per litre and standard petrol €1.679 per litre, with a similar scene: some queues, but no major tailbacks.
João Moniz, unlike the other drivers spoken to by Lusa, said he came to fill up simply because he was “near the station,” though he noted it was “much busier than usual. At this time of day it is normally much quieter,” he added.
Like João Moniz, Beatriz Silva came to fill up with petrol and both expressed frustration that petrol had been left out of the ISP relief, as no rise above 10 cents per litre is expected for that fuel. “Given that petrol and diesel prices are already so expensive in Portugal, perhaps there could have been some discount on petrol as well,” the young driver said.
Sara Ferreira, another driver spoken to by Lusa at the Alfragide station, also came to fill up with petrol ahead of the price rise and noted the station was “a bit fuller than usual,” urging the government to “take more measures. Things are already difficult and if they keep rising like this I don’t know how it’s going to be,” she said.
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João Moniz echoed the sentiment: “given the international context and the fact that there will be increases in the coming weeks, there should be measures” to curb prices, which “are rising a lot,” he said.
Paulo Louro, who came to try to save “something,” described the price rises as “market manipulation.” “Excuses and more excuses — but when the war ends the prices will stay the same,” he said, also calling on the government to take “assertive measures.”
On Friday, prime minister Luís Montenegro indicated the government will continue to monitor fuel price developments “in the coming weeks,” without ruling out further measures at national or even Iberian level.
