Overview
- Diesel averages above €2 per litre again in mid-July, driven by resumed US–Iran hostilities and Russia’s July decision to curb diesel exports after strikes on refineries.
- A parliamentary 'mission flash' report by deputy Philippe Brun says government emergency aid has been too small and poorly targeted and proposes an automatic 'floating' fuel tax modeled on Spain.
- The Fédération française des combustibles, carburants et chauffage (FFC3) formally filed a complaint with the Autorité de la concurrence over TotalEnergies’ station-level price caps, alleging abuse of dominance and unfair competition.
- TotalEnergies says its price caps have cost the group about €200 million while reporting strong upstream profits, and independent stations report volume drops of 15–40% that they blame on the caps and fear rural closures.
- The government defends its targeted measures, says support has cost about €1.4 billion, disputes the idea of a fiscal 'cagnotte', and faces mounting political and regulatory pressure as market uncertainty keeps prices volatile.