On 1 October 2026, price regulation of fuels set by the Ministry of Finance came into force in Czechia. The maximum price of diesel was set at 48.72 crowns per litre and of petrol at 46.14 crowns per litre. The measure applies to filling stations across the country and is the government's second intervention in fuel prices in 2026 – the government first regulated prices from April to mid-July by capping retailers' margins and reducing the excise duty on diesel[1][2].*

Impact on prices

On the very first day of the regulation, diesel at filling stations became cheaper according to findings by ČTK, often by up to three crowns per litre, exceptionally even more – on the D5 motorway at Šlovice near Plzeň, the price of diesel fell by 4.18 crowns in a day[1]. Petrol became cheaper only at some stations, because many of them had already been selling it on Wednesday, 30 September, at a price lower than the newly set cap[1][3]. On the Wednesday before the regulation was introduced, the best-selling petrol, Natural 95, cost 45.86 crowns per litre on average in Czechia and diesel 49.44 crowns per litre, according to data from the company CCS[1].

Examples from filling stations

The Shell filling station in Prague's Chodov lowered the price of diesel from 51.90 to 48.70 crowns per litre and of petrol from 46.90 to 46.10 crowns per litre, that is, just below the set caps[1][3]. OMV stations in Prague, Orlen in Hradec Králové and on the D5 near Plzeň, MOL in Olomouc and Třebíč, and filling stations at Makro wholesale outlets in Ostrava-Hrabová and near Velká Bystřice in the Olomouc region, where diesel became cheaper by roughly three crowns, acted similarly[1][2][3]. The Orlen filling station on the D10 motorway near Mladá Boleslav lowered the price of diesel from 52.50 to exactly 48.72 crowns and of petrol from 47.90 to 46.14 crowns, that is, to the level of the permitted maximum[2]. The state-owned EuroOil network operated by the company Čepro sold fuel below the set cap; diesel in Mladá Boleslav cost 47.50 crowns per litre and petrol remained at the same price as before the regulation, 45.50 crowns[2].

Regional differences

On the Wednesday before the cap was introduced, petrol was cheapest in the Liberec Region (45.58 CZK) and most expensive in Prague (46.36 CZK); diesel was cheapest in South Moravia and the Karlovy Vary Region (49.33 CZK) and most expensive in the Olomouc Region (49.6 CZK)[1]. In Liberec, after the regulation was introduced, prices at some of the cheapest stations, on the contrary, rose to the permitted maximum of 46.14 crowns per litre of petrol[1].

Context of the regulation

The Ministry of Finance intends to set the caps for individual days at least until the end of October 2026 on the basis of a rolling three-day average of wholesale prices, to which is added the maximum retailer margin capped at 2.50 crowns per litre[2][3]. The measure also includes a reduction of the excise duty on diesel from 9.95 crowns to 8.011 crowns per litre, while the excise duty on petrol does not change[2]. According to the government, the rise in fuel prices is related to the conflict in the Middle East, where the USA and Israel attacked Iran in February 2026, and Iran responded by restricting traffic in the Strait of Hormuz[2].

Chronology

  • — After the introduction of a price cap, diesel at filling stations became cheaper by up to three crowns, petrol only in places. ČTK / České noviny Novinky.cz

Sources

  1. ČTK / České noviny — 1 October 2026
  2. Novinky.cz — 1 October 2026
  3. Blesk.cz — 1 October 2026