BRUSSELS, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- Electric vehicle (EV) drivers in Europe pay, on average, less than half as much per kilometer to charge as diesel drivers pay to refuel, according to the Brussels-based environmental group Transport & Environment (T&E).
An analysis released Tuesday by T&E called on Europe to accelerate its transition to EVs and opposed across-the-board cuts in fuel duties. It recommended targeted support for low-income households, together with windfall taxes on energy firms to fund public transport and vehicle scrappage schemes.
"We are at a critical moment in the diesel crisis. Prices are already sky high for citizens and businesses and if the U.S. blocks exports of diesel, there is a real risk of a genuine shortage of supply," said Antony Froggatt, senior director at T&E.
"Electrification is the only way to ensure this is the last oil crisis. But we need short-term measures as well," he said.
The analysis showed that diesel drivers now pay 32 euros (36.4 U.S. dollars) more to fill a 50-liter tank than at the start of the year, with about 16 euros of the increase due to higher refinery margins.
Estimates by the European Central Bank (ECB) show that the margin rose from about 0.10 euro per liter in February to 0.41 euro per liter around Sept. 14.
The comparison covers refueling and recharging costs only. It is based on average consumption of 6.9 liters per 100 km for diesel vehicles and 20.2 kilowatt-hours per 100 km for battery electric vehicles, with electricity priced at 0.343 euro (0.39 U.S. dollar) per kilowatt-hour.
T&E said its charging-cost estimate, which takes into account the correlation between electricity and gas prices and the delayed pass-through to household electricity prices, is likely an upper bound.
An earlier T&E analysis showed that six of the eight major oil companies it studied, including BP and Shell, more than doubled their profits in the European Union (EU) in the second quarter of 2026 from a year earlier.
A T&E study published Monday found that battery-electric heavy trucks have a lower total cost of ownership than diesel ones in six of nine major EU markets. These six markets account for 46 percent of new heavy truck sales in the bloc.
EU Commissioner for Energy and Housing Dan Jorgensen wrote to member states asking them to consider implementing energy-saving measures in response to potentially high gas prices.
T&E said the European Commission should not focus on gas alone, arguing that oil and diesel are at the sharp end of the energy crisis. ■