Newsroom
Fuel prices in Cyprus are once again approaching levels last seen during the sharp energy crisis of 2022, with motorists facing significantly higher costs at the pump and further increases expected in the coming period.
The president of the Cyprus Consumers Association, Marios Drousiotis, told the Cyprus News Agency that petrol and diesel prices have reached particularly high levels, despite government measures designed to ease the burden on consumers.
The Cabinet agreed on Thursday to extend the reduction in excise duty on motor fuels. The measure currently saves motorists approximately 8.3 euro cents per litre, but Drousiotis said fuel remains expensive even with the tax reduction in place.
The scale of the increase becomes clearer when compared with the previous record. On 12 July 2022, during the energy crisis, 95-octane unleaded petrol reached €1.886 per litre, while diesel climbed to €2.053 per litre. Those prices were recorded even after measures had already been introduced to provide relief to consumers.
Current prices remain below those peaks, but the gap has narrowed considerably. According to Drousiotis, 95-octane petrol is now selling for as much as €1.718 per litre, while diesel has reached up to €1.989 per litre.
That puts petrol around 17 cents below its 2022 record and diesel just 6.4 cents below its previous high.
The Consumers Association is particularly concerned by forecasts pointing to continued increases in fuel prices. For households and businesses that depend heavily on private vehicles and road transport, higher pump prices can add substantially to monthly expenses.
The latest figures also show how quickly fuel costs can return to levels that put pressure on consumers. The 2022 price surge was driven by exceptional international energy-market conditions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with governments across Europe introducing measures to cushion the impact on households.
Cyprus has continued using reductions in fuel taxation as one way of limiting the cost to motorists. The latest extension means consumers will retain some relief at a time when prices are again moving close to historic highs.
For drivers, however, the difference between today's prices and the 2022 records is becoming increasingly small, particularly in the case of diesel. If the predicted upward trend continues, the island could once again see fuel prices approaching the levels that caused severe pressure on household budgets four years ago.
