According to data from the Energy Services Regulatory Authority (ERSE), in the first quarter of 2021, in Portugal, petrol (simple gasoline 95) was sold, on average, for 1,501 cents per litre (cent/l) and reached the end of the year with an average selling price of 1,669 cents/l, which represents an increase of almost 17 cents over the year.

In the case of simple diesel, in the first quarter of last year, the average selling price to the public was fixed at 1.324 cents/l, having increased by 20 cents until the end of the year, to 1.520 cents/l, according to the quarterly fuel price bulletins in the 27 European Union (EU) countries.

Compared to the EU average, the difference in the price of gasoline at Portuguese pumps also increased from the beginning to the end of last year, by 13 cents more per litre (cent/l), since it was 4 cents/l more expensive, in the domestic market, in the 1st quarter, increasing by 17 cent/l in the last three months of 2021.

During the first three months of last year, Portugal presented a tax burden on the average sale price of petrol in the order of 63%, three percentage points above the average recorded in the EU.

In the last quarter, the tax burden associated with petrol in Portugal dropped to 57%, but the difference to the EU average increased, as it also decreased to 53%.

The biggest increase was felt between the first and second quarters, with petrol being sold for 21 cent/l more in Portugal in April, May and June than the EU average.

Compared with Spain, Portugal started the year selling gasoline 25 cent/l more expensive than in the neighbouring country.

According to ERSE data, Portugal ended the last quarter of the year in eighth position among the countries that sold the most expensive petrol in the EU, and in the tenth position among those that sold the most expensive diesel.