Economy facing energy affordability crisis as Iran war rages on

Kenneth Fox

The Irish economy is facing an energy affordability crisis as households and businesses face soaring fuel bills due to the war in Iran.

US president Donald Trump predicted the war in the Middle East could be over soon, even as Iran’s hardliners staged a show of loyalty to Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei in a sign that it was not prepared to back down any time soon.

As the Irish Examiner reports, the price of oil soared past the key $100 (€85) a barrel mark on Monday. The conflict has already seen a sharp rise in the price of home heating oil across Ireland.

Motorists are now seeing the price of a litre of diesel hitting €2 in many filling stations, rising from an average of €1.72 just a few weeks ago.

There are now fears that prices at the pump could reach or surpass the levels seen in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which saw diesel peak at €2.09 per litre and petrol at €2.15.

Irish hauliers had threatened to mount rolling protests, blocking key roads and airports in the coming days, saying their industry faces collapse. They called off a planned protest that was due to take place in Dublin on Tuesday.

The Irish Road Haulage Association said the situation in the Middle East has highlighted Ireland’s “dysfunctional market for fuel, where the Government is taking over 65 per cent of the price of a litre of petrol and over 60 per cent of the price of a litre of diesel”.

Hauliers want a temporary suspension of the carbon tax and a removal of the M50 toll for all motorists. Association president Ger Hyland said hauliers feel just as let down as farmers, builders, and the public.

Ibec warned the Government that it needs to take “urgent steps to mitigate an emerging energy affordability crisis”.

Ibec executive director Fergal O’Brien said the recent and rapid surge in global oil prices has again exposed the vulnerability of the Irish economy.