Leading French supermarkets to sell fuel at cost price this weekend

Two of France's largest supermarket chains are launching 'at cost' fuel operations over the first weekend of the summer getaway, as fuel prices remain higher than usual despite recent falls.

The Mousquetaires group, which owns Intermarché and Netto, will sell fuel at cost price at its forecourts tomorrow (Friday, July 3) and Saturday (July 4). The offer covers petrol (SP95, SP98, E10) and diesel, but not superethanol E85 or LPG.

No voucher or registration is required. 

France's largest supermarket fuel retailer, E.Leclerc, announced a similar operation for the same dates, covering 711 of its service stations nationwide. Leclerc's offer also includes superethanol-E85, alongside petrol and diesel.

Group chairman Michel-Édouard Leclerc said the move was intended to support households' purchasing power as they head off on holiday, pointing to the impact of the recent conflict in Iran on pump prices.

In another attempt to keep fuel prices down, TotalEnergies chief executive Patrick Pouyanné announced in June that they will continue to apply fuel price caps across thousands of service stations in France and especially in rural areas.

Why are prices still high?

Fuel prices have been falling in France, particularly since the US and Iran signed an agreement aimed at ending the conflict in the Middle East.

According to price comparison site Carbu.com, diesel averaged €1.887 a litre and unleaded 95-E10 averaged €1.893 on June 26, down 22.3 cents and 15.8 cents respectively over the past month. 

Fuel is around its lowest price in France since February. Even so, prices have not fully returned to normal. 

Thierry Cotillard, head of the Mousquetaires group, told French radio station RMC: 

"We saw the worst of the crisis, at €2.40 a litre. We're at €1.90 now, so that's 50 cents less. But we're still 20 cents above normal levels."

Read more: France economy minister says ‘a little more time’ needed for fuel prices to drop to €1.70

How much will you actually save?

Selling fuel 'at cost' means retailers forgo their profit margin on the sale, but that margin is already slim, so the discount will be modest. 

Leclerc explains on its website that the price charged still includes all mandatory costs: the purchase of crude oil, transport, storage, and taxes, which together make up around 60% of the price at the pump.

Mr Cotillard was blunt about the scale of the saving: "We're not going to bring it down to €1.50.

Instead of €1.88, it might be €1.86 but at least customers will know that ours is the lowest price on the market."

In practice, that works out at roughly €1 saved on a €50 fill-up.

The government's official fuel price comparison site lets drivers compare prices at stations near them. Supermarket forecourts are not always the cheapest option, even during a promotional weekend.