"I will bring together next Tuesday" TotalEnergies and the other distributors and "I ask them for an effort of solidarity," said the Minister of Energy Transition on France Inter, while gasoline prices have sometimes passed the bar of 2 euros per liter.
"Some distributors have made operations at cost price (...) and I will ask them to extend this type of operation because I think that the French do not have the space to pay more for fuel and that this is not the kind of subject on which these actors must make a significant margin," added Pannier-Runacher.
In the midst of rising oil prices, supported by voluntary production cuts in Saudi Arabia and Russia, Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire on Thursday asked the main distributor, TotalEnergies, to extend beyond December 31, 2023 its cap on all fuels to 1.99 euros per liter.
Bruno Le Maire also opposed the idea of a tax rebate, deemed "not responsible" budget.
"What drives up the bill of the French? These are fossil fuels. What disrupts the climate? These are fossil fuels. So there is an urgent need to get out of fossil fuels," said Agnès Pannier-Runacher.
Conversely, 10,000 km in an electric car represents "1,000 euros in fuel savings", said the minister, while admitting that the purchase of these vehicles remains "too expensive".
"With the ecological bonus, the scrappage bonus, we are working to lower the price of access to the electric car and I want to further strengthen the ecological bonus so that households with average incomes can afford this car," she added.
The minister also cited the planned implementation of "leasing at 100 euros (...) per month", without however announcing details on the timing of this complex measure, campaign promise of President Emmanuel Macron.
© 2023 AFP