The public cannot be made to pay for the energy crisis twice: once at the pump and once through the state budget, ELAS said in a statement.
According to the party of Alexis Tsipras, “yet this is the logic of government policy. Instead of raising additional revenue from the refineries’ windfall profits, the government funds subsidies with public money that could be used to meet other urgent social needs.
And this is where the key political question lies: who should pay the bill for the energy crisis? The public or those recording exceptional profits?
€1.3bn in windfall profits in just six months
The estimated combined profits of the two major refining groups, HELLENiQ ENERGY and Motor Oil, total €1.998bn for the first half of 2026. Of this, €1.278bn is estimated to be windfall profit, based on a comparison with historical profitability.
A one-off levy could raise, depending on the rate, between €500m and €1bn in additional public revenue.
That would provide resources to offer meaningful support to consumers, now and throughout the winter, without exhausting the already limited fiscal headroom available for other social priorities.
Why does it matter where the money comes from?
Because when the government funds subsidies solely from available fiscal headroom, it limits its ability to address other urgent social needs.
And that risks putting the public before unacceptable choices:
- Safe schools or warm homes? Should we repair school buildings so plaster does not fall on pupils’ heads, or subsidise heating oil?
- Compensation for flood victims or cheaper heating? Should we support families who lost their homes and property to natural disasters, or households unable to pay their heating bills?
- Should we save livestock farmers or heat our homes? Should we compensate people who lost their flocks and income to the pox outbreak, or subsidise heating oil?
The public should not have to choose between safe schools, compensation for disaster victims, the survival of livestock farmers and warm homes. It needs all of them.
Six European countries call for windfall taxes. Greece is absent.
Germany, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Austria and Poland are calling for a common EU mechanism to tax oil companies’ windfall profits. The European Commission is considering the proposal.
Greece is not among them, despite being able to impose a one-off levy without waiting for an EU decision.
The public cannot be made to pay for the crisis twice. The government must explain why it is not asking those recording exceptional profits to shoulder their fair share.”