The situation on the Ukrainian fuel market remains difficult: prices for gasoline, diesel fuel and liquefied gas are increasing, while consumers have virtually no mechanisms to influence the pricing policy of large gas station chains. According to energy experts, the price increase is due to both objective economic factors and the actions of key market players.
Objective reasons for the price increase include the increase in excise tax from January 1, the weakening of the hryvnia, and the increase in the price of petroleum products at the border, which is directly related to world oil prices. At the same time, these factors do not explain the scale of the price increase observed in the domestic market.
Subjective factors play a decisive role. Large traders have the opportunity to raise prices significantly above the economically justified level, since effective deterrent mechanisms are virtually absent. State regulation does not work, and competition between large chains is limited.
Previously, the function of the so-called "price anchor" was performed by the Privat group, which controlled over one and a half thousand gas stations and could restrain excessive price increases. After the nationalization of key assets in 2022, this mechanism disappeared. Currently, the state-owned gas station network has about 660 stations, but even this is not enough to really influence the market.
Small and medium-sized operators also cannot become an alternative to large players due to limited financial resources and lack of political influence. As a result, prices are formed in the interests of a few large traders, and consumers are forced to accept imposed conditions.
According to experts, at the beginning of the year, the difference between the real cost of fuel and the prices of large networks reached 6–8 hryvnias per liter. The situation with liquefied gas is even more complicated: in the winter period, it is actively used as boiler fuel in supplying countries, which reduces the available volumes for the Ukrainian market.
This pricing model creates additional inflationary risks and directly affects the purchasing power of the population. If earlier a Ukrainian could buy about 260–270 liters of gasoline with an average salary, now it is only 160–170 liters. This means that fuel is not just becoming more expensive, but actually less affordable for most citizens.
