Comparative study on development of fuel prices in Europe

Compared with relatively stable gas prices throughout Europe, Germany’s gas prices vary considerably - often changing several times a day. How these fluctuating prices may be explained and what pricing mechanisms and dynamics affect them was investigated by Ecorys in a European comparative study for the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs.

adelphi contributed to the German case study of the project by observing the prices of regular and diesel gasoline at approximately 300 German gas stations for over a month, both in cities and along highways. The relatively higher gas prices can be explained through duties and taxes, such as the costs associated with safety and environmental protection. Another reason includes the usual fluctuation in commodity prices, especially the fierce competition within the German gas station market and regional "local price differentials". As a result, this analysis confirmed the previous observations of frequent fluctuations and regional price differences in Germany.