Annual Report 2025 — Romanian Fuel Market
Published: 1 February 2026 · Last updated: 2026-05-11 · 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 1,500+ 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 and OSCAR (~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, OSCAR 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 5 parallel sources: Price Monitor (Competition Council + ANPC), SOCAR Direct, OSCAR Direct, ANPC API for UATs (343 units), and the major networks' official websites. Pipeline runs every 2 hours.
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.
