Quotes for bulk quantities of green diesel this week are just above the €1.02/l mark, which includes the recently added excise duty.

As we went to press this week, prices being quoted for orders in the region of 1,000l of green diesel, or marked gas oil (MGO) as it’s more formally known, were ranging from 99.9c/l to €1.06/l, including VAT, throughout the country.

The second reinstatement of the excise duty this year came into play on Thursday 1 August and added 4c/l to the price of petrol, 3c/l to the price of diesel and 1.7c/l to MGO.

The Government initially announced the cut in excise duty on fuel in 2022, and this latest reinstatement has marked the fourth and final add-on to fully restore the duty over the past 24 months.

Brent crude

Brent crude was trading between US$76/barrel and US$77/barrel at the time we went to press. In the first six months of this year, the average price of Brent crude oil stood at US$83.83/barrel. This is US$16 lower than the 2022 annual average, when an energy supply shortage and concerns over fallout from the Russia-Ukraine war saw prices surge.

Brent crude prices peaked in mid-April this year, hitting a six-month high at US$91/barrel. They spiked again at the beginning of July, hitting US$87/barrel. In the last week, Brent crude prices took a sizeable hit amid growing fears of a US recession, coupled with weak Chinese demand. However, the drop in oil prices has been somewhat tempered by rising tensions in the Middle East. For now, analysts say that geopolitical risk is keeping prices from diving further.

As a general rule, fuel price fluctuations tend to trail behind crude oil market prices. But remember, oil is traded in dollars, which means currency fluctuations have a huge impact on pricing.