Excise clearances of marked gas oil (green diesel) for 2023 saw a decrease of 4.5% compared with 2022.
This is according to statistics from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), which detailed that excise clearances in December 2023 of marked gas oil were 21% lower than in December 2022.
Marked gas oil is primarily used for off-road purposes such as agriculture and the heating of larger buildings.
Excise clearances refer to amounts of oil on which duty has been paid that are removed from tax warehouses.
Clearance data provide a proxy for sales and the associated level of consumption, but do not necessarily reflect actual consumption.
Fuel Percentage changes from January-December 2023/2022 Autodiesel 0.2% Unleaded petrol 8.4% Marked gas oil -4.5% Kerosene -0.4%
Paul McElvaney, CSO statistician said: “At 286 million litres, clearances of autodiesel in December 2023 were 4% lower than in December 2022” and that the annual clearances of autodielsel in 2023 were around 3.6 billion litres.
McElvaney added that 2023 clearances of unleaded petrol, which stood at one billion litres, were “8% higher than in 2022 but saw a decrease of 3% on 2019 levels.
“Clearances of unleaded petrol in December 2023 were 83 million litres, which was 4% higher than in December 2022.
The annual clearances of kerosene for 2023 were 0.4% lower than in 2022 and at 918 million litres, McElvaney said this was “the lowest annual clearance figure for kerosene since 2014”.
Clearances in December 2023 of kerosene were 14% lower compared with December 2022.
Excise tax rates
Excise duty on mineral oils is currently paid to the exchequer when the oils are removed from bonded warehouses.
Current excise rates (including carbon taxes) that are applicable at the end of the release month (or the rate that applied for most of the relevant month) are given in the table below in euro per thousand litres for the fuels.
Fuel Rate per 1000 litres Autodiesel €526.83 Unleaded petrol €606.39 Marked gas oil €149.09 Kerosene €122.83 Auto liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) €142.76 Other LPG €79.17 Heavy fuel oil non-propellant €164.23 Heavy fuel oil for navigation €526.83
The temporary excise rate reductions, which were introduced last year in response to higher fuel prices caused by the war in Ukraine, are extended until March 31, 2024.
As part of Budget 2024, half of the outstanding amounts of 8c on petrol, 6c on diesel and 3.4c on green diesel will be restored on April 1, 2024, with the balance restored on August 1, 2024.