Erkki Keldo, Minister of Energy and the Environment, has sent for approval the draft regulations under which the rates of stockpiling fees of liquid fuels and gas will be reduced by approximately ten per cent from 1 January 2027. The amendment will slightly reduce the expenses of consumers, while maintaining funding for the management of the stockpiles and infrastructure necessary for the security of energy supply.
The stockpiling fee of petrol will be reduced from 4.60 euros to 4.14 euros, and the stockpiling fee of diesel and light heating oil will be reduced from 3.70 euros to 3.33 euros per 1,000 litres. The new rate for jet fuel and kerosene is 6.30 euros per 1,000 litres, and the rate for heavy fuel oil is 3.33 euros per 1,000 kilograms.
‘As we have built up sufficient financial reserves, we can reduce the stockpiling fees of liquid fuel and gas. Reducing the stockpiling fees of fuel will help to lower the expenses of individuals and businesses, while maintaining the fuel reserves and security of supply for Estonia. Compared to other price components, the stockpiling fees in Estonia are low, so the impact on the final price is not significant. However, we want every price component to be justified and not higher than it really needs to be,’ Keldo said.
The share of the stockpiling fee in the price of petrol, including VAT, will decrease by about 0.057 cents and in the price of diesel by 0.046 cents per litre.
The Estonian Stockpiling Agency (ESPA) forecasts that it will collect approximately 5.1 million euros in liquid fuel stockpiling fees in 2027. The reduction of the liquid fuel stockpiling fee is made possible by utilising the surplus funds collected previously.
The stockpiling fee of strategic gas stocks will be reduced from 0.73 euros to 0.66 euros per megawatt-hour. The reduction of the stockpiling fee is enabled by the stabilised storage costs at the Inčukalns underground gas storage facility in Latvia. The change will slightly reduce consumers’ gas bills, whilst maintaining gas stocks and the funding of the Pakrineeme LNG infrastructure. The stockpiling fee for a household customer consuming 9 MWh of gas per year will fall from 6.57 euros to 5.94 euros.
The strategic liquid fuel stocks of Estonia help to supply the nation’s residents and businesses with fuel in the event of extensive supply disruptions. Stocks comprising petrol, diesel, and aviation fuel currently correspond to approximately 81 days of normal consumption.
The stockpiling fee of liquid fuel is paid to the ESPA by the payers of fuel excise duty upon releasing fuel for consumption, and for the end user, it is included in the price at the gas station.
The stockpiling fee of liquid fuel has been collected since 2005. The new stockpiling fee rates of liquid fuel and gas will come into force on 1 January 2027.
