On Thursday 29 October 2026, Greenpeace Luxembourg issued a press release reporting that the oil industry had made €36 billion in additional profits in the European Union since the beginning of the war against Iran, due to soaring diesel and petrol prices.
According to Greenpeace Luxembourg, this amounts to approximately €154 million per day, as revealed by a new study commissioned by Greenpeace Germany. In September alone, these additional profits reached €7.3 billion, a monthly record since the beginning of the period studied. In Luxembourg, the study estimates total windfall profits for oil companies at €210 million.
On Thursday 29 October, Shell, TotalEnergies and other oil companies are expected to announce their profits for the third quarter of 2026, with further records expected. Between 1 March and 19 October 2026, in the European Union, pre-tax diesel prices increased by an average of 22.7 cents per litre more than crude oil prices, compared with 13.3 cents for petrol. According to the study, these differences indicate additional margins collected by oil companies, whose production, refining and distribution costs have changed little. According to the NGO, the war against Iran and the crisis in the Middle East would thus have served as a pretext for increasing margins at the expense of European motorists, who are facing record fuel prices.
Greenpeace is calling on the Luxembourg and European governments to commit to introducing a permanent tax on the profits of oil and gas companies. After six EU Member States (Germany, Portugal, Spain, Austria, Italy and Poland) called for taxing the windfall profits of fossil fuel companies, the European Commission was tasked with setting up a working group on the issue. European leaders have also expressed their openness to new tax measures as part of the next EU budget for the period 2028-2034. An extraordinary European Council summit, scheduled for 26 and 27 November 2026, will notably be devoted to this issue and to the possibilities of creating new taxes and contributions to address the budget deficit.
"Oil companies are unscrupulously exploiting people who depend on their cars and taking advantage of wars and climate destruction to enrich themselves," said Altynai Bidaubayle, campaigner at Greenpeace Luxembourg. "While extreme heat claimed tens of thousands of lives this summer and households are preparing to face further high energy bills this winter, European governments and the EU must finally introduce a permanent tax on all fossil fuel profits." According to Greenpeace, the revenue generated should be used to reduce household energy bills, accelerate the transition towards an independent European energy system based on renewable energy and energy savings, and support populations affected by the climate crisis in Luxembourg, Europe and the rest of the world.
While the extension of the "Tankrabatt" is currently being discussed in Luxembourg as part of the tripartite negotiations, Greenpeace warns against a measure whose effects on household budgets remain limited and temporary.
"Continuing to subsidise fuels, at the risk of deviating from our climate commitments in the transport sector, is particularly worrying. While fuel prices weigh on household budgets, oil companies are taking advantage of the crisis to generate windfall profits. The government should invest in sustainable solutions that enable households to reduce their energy expenditure and our dependence on fossil fuels," Greenpeace Luxembourg stated, citing a STATEC report dated 20 October 2026.
Greenpeace is calling on the Luxembourg government to commit to this European tax at upcoming European summits and as part of the European Commission's work. According to the NGO, a 33% tax on average monthly additional profits would generate approximately €9 million per month for the Luxembourg state budget. This revenue could finance the replacement of gas and heating oil systems with solutions using renewable energy in order to address the climate, energy and cost-of-living crises.
