THE REDUCTION IN HEATING OIL IS ACCELERATED - NINE DAYS EARLIER DUE TO WEATHER CONDITIONS AND CONCERN ABOUT A NEW INCREASE - Filenews 14/10 by Eleftheria Paizanou
Nine days earlier, the measure of reducing the consumption tax on heating oil is expected to be implemented, compared to the Government's initial plans, according to which it would be in force from November 1, 2026 to April 30, 2027.
The Minister of Finance, Makis Keravnos, at the beginning of the discussion of the state budget in the parliamentary Committee on Finance, consented to the request of the president of the Committee, Christiana Erotokritou, for the immediate implementation of the measure, so that households can breathe as quickly as possible, especially in mountainous areas, as at night the weather conditions already smell of winter.
With the bill, the consumption tax on heating oil is reduced from 7.4 to 2.1 cents per liter. The measure, according to the bill, is expected to lead to a reduction of the excise tax on heating fuel to the minimum levels allowed by the acquis communautaire, by 5.373 cents per liter excluding VAT and 6.39 cents including VAT. The fiscal cost is estimated at €5.2 million.
After Keravnos' presence in the Finance Committee on Monday, it was said that the heating oil bill would be taken to the Plenary Session of the Parliament for approval tomorrow, Thursday, so that the measure could come into force the next day. However, this week the Plenary will not meet and, as everything shows, the bill will be put up for approval on Thursday, October 22, so that the measure can be implemented the next day, the 23rd of the month.
They started filling tanks
However, dozens of citizens, fearing a further increase in prices, began to stock up on heating oil in order to meet their needs for a few weeks during the winter months. Some believe that, with the way prices are moving, the reduction of the consumption tax on heating oil will be absorbed by a new rise in price.
Yesterday, the average nationwide price of heating oil was €1,679 per liter. In fact, compared to last February, the price of heating oil increased by 77.66%, which corresponds to 73 cents per liter. At that time, without any government support measures being implemented, the price of heating oil was €0.94 per liter. Therefore, last February, for the purchase of 1,000 liters of heating oil, the cost was €940, while today the consumer will pay €1,670. That is, consumers will be asked to pay €730 more for a thousand liters.
The Cypriot authorities are making an effort in Brussels to further reduce the consumption tax on heating oil. In addition, they are lobbying for the abolition of VAT from EAC accounts.
During the last ECOFIN, the Minister of Finance, Makis Keravnos, joined the request of the Prime Ministers of Greece and Italy for more funds to be allocated for the improvement of energy networks, with the aim of absorbing energy from green sources.
Parties are pushing for new support
Further measures to support households were demanded by the parties during yesterday's session of the parliamentary Energy Committee, with the aim of mitigating the effects of energy costs.
The president of the Committee and DISY MP, Nikos Georgiou, stated that the middle class is shrinking and the wallets of the low-income strata are emptying before the end of the month. He spoke of the financial suffocation of the citizens, accusing the Government of following the developments.
AKEL MP, Konstantinos Konstantinou, said that the Government's measures are insufficient and without impact.
ELAM MP, Eugene Hamboullas, argued that the increase in VAT to 19% on real estate fueled inflation.
DIKO MP, Chrysis Pantelidis, said that the Government should consider reducing taxes, while stressing the need to support large families, families with three children and single parents.
ALMA MP, Irini Charalambidou, noted that the golden passports and the reduced tax for foreign workers skyrocketed rent prices and the cost of buying real estate.
New measures are coming!
And all this at a time when the President of the Republic, arriving yesterday at the Forbes conference, stated that, in addition to the measures announced, the Government is considering many other measures, some of which require the consent of Brussels.
In fact, he said that government support measures exceed €1 billion. and move in three directions.
As he said, these are measures that bring immediate results, such as the reduction of VAT on a number of products, and measures that increase disposable income, which include tax reform, the ATA, the increase in the minimum wage and the pension reform.
He indicated that the third pillar concerns institutional measures in relation to Vasilikos and natural gas.
According to President Christodoulides, in the context of the European Council, he will raise the issue of further reduction of the consumption tax on heating oil and the abolition of VAT on electricity.
Over 12,000 checks
During yesterday's meeting of the Energy Committee, the Director General of the Ministry of Finance, Andreas Zachariadis, answering questions, stated that controls are being carried out in the market, but it is not easy to confirm whether the support measures reach consumers in full.
An official of the Consumer Protection Service said that thousands of checks are carried out in the market. As he said, in 2025 more than 25.000 checks were carried out, while by August 2026 over 12.000 checks were carried out.
He also pointed out that consumers, by making careful choices, can save up to 25%-35% from supermarket to supermarket. The representative of the Central Bank, Maria Papageorgiou, stressed that any measures must be targeted at vulnerable groups, so as not to create new inflationary pressures.
