Fuel prices keep climbing in France, while just across the border in Spain diesel is selling for up to 50 centimes a litre less, and thousands of French drivers are crossing over every day to fill up at the cheaper pumps.
The gap exists because the Spanish government chose to slash tax on fuel. This month brought a further reduction on top of that existing discount: 20 centimes less per litre for diesel and 5 centimes less for petrol.
Why the price gap opened up
The widening difference comes down to tax policy rather than the underlying cost of oil. By cutting the tax levied on fuel more aggressively than France has, Spain has pushed pump prices well below those on the French side of the border, even though both countries buy fuel on the same international markets.
France has some of the highest fuel taxes in Europe, a longstanding feature of its budget that funds road infrastructure and other public spending but also means pump prices there tend to track above those of several neighbouring countries.
French drivers head south
The price difference has become large enough that thousands of French motorists now drive into Spain specifically to fill their tanks, according to the report. For households living near the border, particularly in regions such as Pyrénées-Atlantiques and Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France, a short trip across the frontier can mean a noticeably cheaper fill-up.
Cross-border fuel runs are not a new phenomenon in France, which shares land borders with several countries where taxes and pump prices differ, but the scale of the current gap with Spain has drawn fresh attention as French fuel costs continue to rise.
Rising cost of living pressure
The fuel price divide comes as French households more broadly grapple with the rising cost of living, from taxes to everyday prices, an issue that has featured prominently in recent television coverage of the squeeze facing consumers. Spain's decision to deepen its fuel tax discount this month is likely to keep drawing French drivers over the border for as long as the price gap persists.
