In response to rising fuel prices at service stations, Sachsen‑Anhalt’s Ministerpräsident Sven Schulze (CDU) has urged the federal government to cut the energy tax. He told “Bild am Sonntag” that the Minister of Finance should lower the energy tax “until the market normalises” and that the Federal Cartel Office must ensure that any relief is passed straight to consumers.
Schulze argues the drop is especially needed for commuters and families in rural areas, where the burden of fuel costs is high. Since Germany has no influence over international crude‑oil markets, he says the state must act through domestic taxes. “The tax and duty share currently ranges from 50 to 65 percent. For a litre of Super E10 priced at EUR 1.94, a driver pays EUR 0.65 of energy tax, EUR 0.15-0.18 of CO₂ tax, plus a VAT of EUR 0.31” he explained.
He criticised what he calls a “tax on taxes”-the VAT applied to the energy tax and the CO₂ levy-and said the proposed reduction would bring prices back to last year’s levels. “Diesel averaged EUR 1.60 in 2025. Prices need to return to the pre‑price‑explosion level” the CDU politician added.
Schulze’s appeal follows the summer‑2022 decision by the then‑government to slash the fuel energy tax for three months to mitigate the impact of the energy‑price shock triggered by Russia’s war in Ukraine.