Diesel Price Explosion Drives Up Transport Costs

Rapidly rising fuel prices lead to market distortions. The Federal Association of Goods Transport, Logistics and Waste Disposal (BGL) calls for immediate countermeasures from politics. The economy and the population must prepare for rising prices.

(Frankfurt/Main) In light of the ongoing massive increases in energy prices, the spokesperson of the board of the Federal Association of Goods Transport, Logistics and Waste Disposal (BGL) e.V., Prof. Dr. Dirk Engelhardt, warned on Thursday of far-reaching consequences: “The recent enormous increases in energy prices – the diesel price alone has risen by around 58% within a year – cannot be compensated for in a timely manner by the medium-sized German transport industry. Due to the low profit margins in road freight transport, transport companies that fail to pass on the cost increases risk their existence. In the long term, the economy and ultimately the consumer will have to prepare for rising prices. To maintain market stability in the short term, accompanying measures from politics are needed, both regarding fuel prices and the production of AdBlue®.”

Countermeasures could be taken, for example, if the climate protection contribution of the industry is not only borne by the mainly German transport companies that refuel in Germany and therefore pay the new CO2 tax due to national emissions trading, but by all market participants active in Germany through the truck toll. Including the CO2 tax in the truck toll would be competitively neutral and is explicitly supported by the BGL. In other EU countries, there is also the instrument of the so-called tax-privileged “business diesel” to relieve transport companies.

Production of AdBlue® at Risk

Due to the rapid rise in natural gas prices, the production of the so-called AdBlue® (= urea, which is required for Euro VI truck engines) is also at risk. Various AdBlue® manufacturers have already announced that they will partially or completely reduce production due to unprofitability. This would have dramatic consequences for about 90% of truck traffic in Germany that relies on AdBlue®. Here too, politics should take countermeasures and secure the supply of the industry with AdBlue®.

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