Last month, a total of 964 million liters of diesel, petrol and LPG were refueled in the Netherlands. That is 8.5 percent less than in August last year, according to an analysis of CBS data by Bovag. Relatively speaking, the demand for diesel has fallen the most. If this trend continues, according to the Bovag, the annual total fuel uptake for 2020 is expected to be at the lowest level since 1989.
Compared to August last year, diesel sales fell most sharply last month, by more than 10 percent, to 523 million liters. This means that diesel still represents a majority in the overall picture compared to petrol and LPG. The number of liters of petrol used decreased by more than 6 percent to 424 million liters and the sale of LPG fell by more than 5.5 percent to 17 million liters. Over the first eight months of 2020, sales of petrol, diesel and LPG fell by 14, 12 and 15 percent respectively compared to the same period in 2019. On average, total fuel sales recorded a minus of over 13 percent to less than 8 billion liter.
Incidentally, there is a plus for the sale of E5 (Euro 98). In the first eight months of 2019, 44 million liters of E5 were refueled, compared to 85 million liters this year. That is almost twice as much, although it is only a small part of a total of 3.3 billion liters of petrol used. This is probably due to the fact that many people prefer not to refuel with the new E10 fuel and therefore switch to the more expensive E5. Given the sharp drop in fuel demand and the fact that people are currently working from home again because of the second corona wave, the Bovag predicts that the total fuel sales by the end of this year could fall below 12 billion liters. That would be the case for the first time since 1989.
Structural change
Currently, the decline in fuel demand is mainly attributable to the corona crisis, but in the long term, with the increasing popularity of electric driving, a structural change is looming. The Dutch government will already feel the impact on excise income this year, but in the long term it is obvious that the demand for fuel will only decrease further. Seen in that light, it is not surprising that politicians want to slowly move towards phasing out tax benefits for electric cars.