The Lavéra refinery, in Martigues, France, March 17, 2026. MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP
On Monday, March 23, Greece released €300 million in subsidies for fuel and fertilizers. Spain is offering a discount of up to 30 cents per liter of fuel at the pump. In Italy, a government decree cut fuel prices by 25 cents per liter. And France? Nearly one month after the start of the war in the Middle East, on February 28, which sent oil prices soaring and, as a result, pushed up the cost of diesel and gasoline, the French government is also trying to ease the burden. But it has stopped short of offering direct aid that would cost the state.
The government is asking refiners to ramp up production. It sent a letter to the six French refineries "to ask them about their ability to increase production of products we currently refine the least on our territory," the Finance Ministry explained. Among these are jet fuel and especially diesel. Before the war, more than half of France's diesel consumption was imported, notably from the Persian Gulf. This dependence has led, since early March, to a much sharper rise in diesel prices than in gasoline, exceeding €2.10 per liter in many service stations.
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