Petrol prices in 2026: Why driving your car in Australia is becoming a luxury and filling up in Belgium is the new standard
Let's be honest: if you've been to the bowser in the past few weeks, you would've had a shock. I caught up with a mate of mine over the weekend—a mechanic who swears by his Motorolie 1e Prijs 5w40 Petrol And Diesel 5 L for his old diesel ute—and he said, "Mate, it's just not right anymore. I'm over there with jerry cans because I work in Belgium, and I'm literally hauling fuel back across the border." He's not the only one. The petrol price in the Netherlands has gone through the roof in early 2026, and this isn't just a temporary blip. This is a structural shift that's going to define how we get around for years to come.
The perfect storm: The Hague meets Hormuz
What a lot of people don't realise is that we're copping a double whammy. Yes, the excise has gone up. Since January 1, we've lost the so-called "discount", or to put it another way: it's been partially shifted to public transport. In the end, we're now paying 84.47 cents excise per litre of petrol. But that's only half the story.
The real tension is coming from the global market. The blockade in the Strait of Hormuz and the unrest in the Middle East are driving the oil price up significantly. Forget the political spin coming out of The Hague for a minute; this is the raw reality of the oil market. These two factors combined—Low Price Car Modified Fuel Pressure Regulator Fuel Control Valve Petrol Booster or not, your car runs on a fossil fuel that's simply becoming scarcer—have pushed the price up by nearly 6 cents in two weeks. On January 13, a litre was already at €2.237.
The Belgian paradise (and the German problem)
Here's where it gets bizarre. In Belgium, they're just playing it smart. While we're squeezing our motorists here in the Netherlands, the Belgians are keeping prices stable. In fact, if you fill up now in the Belgian towns of Lommel or Baarle-Hertog, you can be anywhere from 30 to 40 cents per litre better off. For a family with two cars, we're talking hundreds of euros a year. According to my own observations and data from fuel card providers, the difference can be as much as 62 cents per litre. That's not just having a win; that's taking money straight out of your neighbour's pocket.
And what about Germany? That's the trap. People think, "Oh, Germany's cheap too." Wrong. Germany is actually increasing its CO2 tax, and with the new auction system for emission rights, petrol is getting more expensive there too. Aoui good price factory of modified motorcycle carburettors manufacturer compatible Keima petrol motorcycle carburettor with good service or not, you're better off running that motorbike of yours empty in Belgium than in Germany.
How politics is letting us down
I was there, in The Hague, when those debates were happening. Deputy Prime Minister Sophie Hermans is trying to put a positive spin on it: "It could have been worse." Yeah, right, our bowsers are the most expensive in Europe! The cabinet had a fund of 1.7 billion to lower the excise, but the ChristenUnie, with a motion, stripped 448 million euros out of it for buses. Fine if you want to support public transport, but don't pass that bill onto the commuter who lives in a regional area and doesn't have a tram stop at their door.
The result? Service stations in border towns like Venlo and Enschede might as well shut up shop. I heard from a business owner in Limburg who can't even sell his 1M Colourful Gas Oil Fuel Line Petrol Tube Pipe for Motorcycle Dirt Pit Bike Atv anymore because there's not a soul coming through. They're all driving those 10 minutes across the border.
What does this actually mean for your hip pocket?
- Commuters: Expect to pay at least $15 extra a week if you're doing 100 km a day.
- Small business owners: Your fleet is becoming a major cost. Time to look at more efficient engines or planning routes that go past Belgian petrol stations.
- Mechanics/hobbyists: If you're tinkering with an old bike or car, it's getting more expensive to take it for a test run. Think about getting a Fuel Pressure Regulator to optimise your fuel use; every bit of saving counts now.
The future: this isn't a dip, this is the new normal
Insiders have told me that while inflation is dropping, energy is actually getting more expensive because of this excise hike. It's not going to do our cost of living any favours. And as long as the tensions in the Middle East continue, the oil market will stay volatile. I'll make a prediction: the petrol price will break through the €2.30 barrier this year. And all the politicians are doing is pointing fingers at each other.
My advice? If you live within 20 kilometres of the border, drive on through to Belgium. Take those jerry cans with you (safely, of course). And for the tech heads out there: keep experimenting with your Petrol Booster Applicator or other tuning parts, because we need to squeeze every last drop out of the internal combustion engine while we still can. The government isn't helping us, so we'll just have to help ourselves.
Anyway: keep on driving, but don't be a mug. The road is open, and the border's not far away.