{
  "id": 10724647,
  "title": "Oil giants rush to help Italy’s Meloni curb energy costs with fuel price caps",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/29/oil-giants-rush-to-help-italys-meloni-curb-energy-costs-with-fuel",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-29T15:27:59.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today-freemalays",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/business/2026/09/29/oil-giants-rush-to-help-italy-s-meloni-curb-energy-costs-with-fuel-price-caps"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed gratitude to Kuwait and Q8 for agreeing to cap fuel prices in Italy. Q8 plans to introduce a price cap on petrol pump prices in Italy for one month, beginning October 1st. Similar commitments have been made by Italian energy company Eni and Azerbaijan's SOCAR. Analysts believe these actions are aimed at gaining favor with the Italian government and preventing the imposition of a windfall tax on energy profits. Meloni is seeking resources to assist families and businesses dealing with rising energy costs as she prepares the government's 2027 budget for presentation in October, before an election the following year.\n\nQ8 Italy announced the cap, stating its purpose is to provide tangible benefits for motorists, though the exact price has not been disclosed. On Monday, SOCAR and Eni began capping diesel prices at €2.19 (US$2.48) per liter and petrol at €1.99 per liter at their pump stations in Italy. Financial experts from Equita and Intermonte suggest that the initiative could mitigate the risk of new taxes on windfall profits for energy companies such as Eni.\n\nThe proposal has garnered support from the finance ministers of Germany, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Poland, and Austria, who are advocating for an EU-wide windfall tax on energy companies. They caution that consumers are experiencing one of the most significant oil supply shocks in decades, leading to heightened voter discontent over increasing living costs. The Italian National Consumers Union welcomed Q8's action, noting that approximately half of Italy's pump stations will now implement price caps. However, the group warns of potential abuse of dominant market positions, urging measures to prevent independent pump stations from being squeezed out and forced to close.\n\nDespite the price caps, average fuel prices have not seen a significant reduction, according to industry ministry data. As of Tuesday, self-service petrol prices averaged €2.126 per liter, a slight decrease from €2.159 on Sunday. Diesel prices also experienced a minor decline, dropping from €2.377 to €2.335 per liter. On motorway networks, petrol prices were reported at €2.180 per liter, while diesel prices were at €2.383 per liter.",
  "summary": "Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is scrambling to find resources to help families and firms cope with soaring energy costs as she prepares the government's 2027 budget in October.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Oil giants rush to help Italy’s Meloni curb energy costs with fuel price caps",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/29/oil-giants-rush-to-help-italys-meloni-curb-energy-costs-with-fuel-10729371",
        "published": "2026-09-29T15:27:59.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}