Annual Report 2025 — Romanian Fuel Market
Published: 1 February 2026 · Last updated: 2026-10-02 · Author: Stoian Andrei-Șerban · Editor: PretCarburant.ro
2025 closed with modest fuel price growth in Romania: standard petrol +2.4%, diesel +2.9%, LPG +4.2% YoY. Despite small headline figures, seasonality, late-year political decisions and global market volatility created clear pressures. This report covers the data, context and 2026 predictions.
Executive summary (TL;DR)
- 2025 average standard 95 petrol: 7.31 RON/L (vs 7.14 RON/L in 2024 → +2.4%)
- 2025 average standard diesel: 7.53 RON/L (vs 7.32 RON/L in 2024 → +2.9%)
- 2025 average auto LPG: 3.68 RON/L (vs 3.53 RON/L in 2024 → +4.2%)
- Seasonality: diesel rose steadily through Q2-Q4 (+0.21 RON/L May-December). Petrol and LPG had lower volatility.
- Major Q1 2026 event: OUG 19/2026 (1 April – 30 June 2026) caps commercial markup; consequence: nationwide brand-uniform prices at major networks.
- 2026 prediction: likely mild decrease post-30 June when the cap expires and competition resumes, but high Brent and inflation-indexed excise create longer-term upward pressure.
1. 2025 price evolution
Aggregated data from 1709 monitored stations (Petrom, OMV, Rompetrol, MOL, Lukoil, Socar, OSCAR, Gazprom networks + independents) shows the following monthly trajectory:
| Month | Petrol 95 | Diesel | Auto LPG |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 2025 | 7.30 | 7.41 | 3.61 |
| June 2025 | 7.45 | 7.60 | 3.64 |
| July 2025 | 7.39 | 7.52 | 3.78 |
| August 2025 | 7.26 | 7.60 | 3.76 |
| September 2025 | 7.18 | 7.59 | 3.55 |
| October 2025 | 7.31 | 7.42 | 3.62 |
| November 2025 | 7.23 | 7.50 | 3.74 |
| December 2025 | 7.28 | 7.62 | 3.76 |
| Annual avg | 7.31 | 7.53 | 3.68 |
Observed seasonality
- Petrol (95): peak in June (before vacation season), trough in September. Annual spread: 0.27 RON/L (~3.7%).
- Diesel: steady upward path — minimum May (7.41), maximum December (7.62). Winter heating demand and commercial transport push price up by ~0.21 RON/L over the year. Spread: 2.8%.
- Auto LPG: July spike (3.78) correlated with BBQ + grilling + rural vacation demand. Stable rest of year. Spread: 6.5% — largest percentage volatility.
For full data on any month from the archive, see 2025 archive or the 60-month rolling index.
2. YoY comparisons (vs 2024 and 2023)
| Fuel | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | Δ 2025 vs 2024 | Δ 2025 vs 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Petrol 95 | 6.98 RON/L | 7.14 RON/L | 7.31 RON/L | +2.4% | +4.7% |
| Diesel | 7.17 RON/L | 7.32 RON/L | 7.53 RON/L | +2.9% | +5.0% |
| Auto LPG | 3.38 RON/L | 3.53 RON/L | 3.68 RON/L | +4.2% | +8.9% |
Compared to Romanian inflation (5.1% in 2024, 4.8% in 2025), petrol and diesel growth was sub-inflationary. LPG is the exception — above-inflation growth, mainly due to global propane-butane quotes.
3. Romania in European context
In 2025, Romania remained among the cheapest 5 EU countries for petrol and among the cheapest 7 for diesel. 2025 annual averages (EUR/L equivalent):
| Position | Country | Petrol 95 (EUR/L) | Diesel (EUR/L) |
|---|---|---|---|
| EU most expensive | Netherlands | 2.12 | 1.72 |
| Top 5 expensive | Italy | 1.89 | 1.75 |
| Top 5 expensive | Germany | 1.75 | 1.55 |
| Top 5 expensive | France | 1.82 | 1.68 |
| EU median | — | ~1.55 | ~1.40 |
| RO position | Romania | 1.47 | 1.52 |
| Bottom 5 | Poland | 1.48 | 1.55 |
| Bottom 5 | Bulgaria | 1.40 | 1.46 |
| EU cheapest | Malta | 1.38 | 1.42 |
For full analysis see EU comparison.
4. Network competition
- Most expensive annual averages: OMV and Lukoil (~0.15-0.25 RON/L above mean), driven by premium additive packages and central locations (motorways, big cities).
- Most accessible averages: Rompetrol (~0.08-0.15 RON/L below mean), competitive pricing strategy, many stations in rural and suburban zones.
- Mean spread between most expensive and cheapest network: 0.32 RON/L for petrol, 0.28 RON/L for diesel. For an average driver with 50 L/month, conscious network choice = ~16 RON/month or ~190 RON/year savings.
Live network comparison: network comparator.
5. Major event: OUG 19/2026
On 26 March 2026, the Romanian Government published Emergency Ordinance 19/2026 in the Official Gazette, capping commercial markup on petrol and diesel at 2025 average levels during 1 April – 30 June 2026. The measure was framed as response to rising Q1 2026 prices and as anti-inflation consumer protection.
Effects observed (through 7 May 2026)
- Brand-uniform prices nationwide at Petrom, OMV, MOL, Lukoil, Socar, Gazprom. Same station in Bucharest and Cluj displays exact same price.
- Variation preserved only at Rompetrol and independents (~5-7% of total market).
- Effective markup remained ~1.00 RON/L petrol, ~0.95 RON/L diesel — confirmed by price breakdown analysis.
- Compliance: monitored daily by Competition Council + ANPC. See live OUG 19 tracker.
What follows after 30 June 2026?
- Base scenario (~50% probability): OUG expires, competition resumes. Prices rise 0.15-0.30 RON/L within 2-3 weeks post-30 June as networks rebuild geographic differentiation. Stabilization estimated August.
- Extension scenario (~30% probability): Government extends cap with new OUG if inflationary pressure persists. Precedent in other EU countries.
- Extreme scenario (~20% probability): significant decrease (Brent down or global demand declining). Prices stay stable or drop.
6. 2026 predictions
Based on 2023-2025 trajectory, Brent evolution and 2026 fiscal obligations:
- 2026 average petrol 95: estimated 7.40-7.55 RON/L (+1.5% to +3.3% YoY).
- 2026 average diesel: estimated 7.60-7.75 RON/L (+1% to +2.9%).
- 2026 average LPG: estimated 3.75-3.90 RON/L (+2% to +6%).
- 2027 excise indexation: estimated +4-5% per forecast inflation.
This section is analytical — not buying advice. Predictions are indicative and may become inaccurate as new data emerges.
7. Methodology and limitations
Data comes from our daily pipeline collecting prices from the Price Monitor (Competition Council + ANPC), queried through the ANPC API for more than 350 administrative units, and from the SOCAR Direct feed. From OSCAR we only have station locations, without prices. Pipeline runs several times a day.
Strict outlier filter applied before averages (petrol 5.50–12.00 RON/L; diesel 5.50–13.00 RON/L; LPG 2.50–6.00 RON/L). Monthly pages also use a median filter.
Acknowledged limitations:
- We don't aggregate per-station premium petrol (98+) and premium diesel prices — variations are too high for consistent aggregated data.
- AdBlue and CNG data are not in the main pipeline (small volumes, uneven reporting).
- EU comparative estimates are from Eurostat reports; reflect official averages that may differ marginally from real pump prices.
Full methodology: methodology page.
8. Citation and reuse
This report is published under Creative Commons BY 4.0. Free to use in press, academic papers, presentations, your own apps — only obligation: visible attribution.
Academic citation format
Stoian, A.-Ș. (2026). Annual Report 2025 — Romanian Fuel Market.
PretCarburant.ro. https://pretcarburant.ro/en/annual-report-2025
Dataset DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19560194 (CC-BY 4.0).Journalistic citation
"According to the 2025 annual report published by PretCarburant.ro, average petrol price grew 2.4% YoY..." with link to https://pretcarburant.ro/en/annual-report-2025.
Downloadable primary data
Raw set (CSV with all daily records 2015-2025): Zenodo DOI 10.5281/zenodo.19560194. Live REST API v1: /en/api.
9. See also
This report is an educational and analytical representation based on public data. For specific tax matters consult the Tax Code or a tax advisor. For questions or corrections write to contact@pretcarburant.ro.
