The usual scene in the final days of last week, with long lines at fuel stations, has shifted entirely this Monday. The end of the 20-cent discount on fuel spent more than a mere moment in time, and it pushed customer flow down by as much as seventy percent. On the first working day of the year, those who did stop by the stations tended to take fewer precautions and left with smaller fills, drawn more by opportunity than by necessity.
That assessment comes from Emilio Corcoles, president of the Provincial Service Stations Association. He notes that drivers remain hopeful they will return to these stations in the near future, now that the initial wave of discounted refueling has passed. “This was expected. People thought the discount would vanish sooner,” Corcoles says. He adds that what sold out last week could have continued to sell if the discount had been extended for at least three more months, a move that might have helped moderate the rise in consumer prices.
The scene at the pumps was quiet. A customer refuels at a gas station in the Alicante region. The shift in demand is clear as many motorists adjust to the new pricing reality and recalibrate their refueling habits to fit the new economics.
Beyond today’s developments, station operators fear longer-term effects. If prices climb again, overall fuel consumption could dip further, impacting the industry’s outlook. In the past week, both diesel and petrol rose by about three cents on average, even before factoring in the discount. Gasoline measured around 1.597 euros per liter for ninety-five octane in Alicante, about 1.81 euros higher than eight months earlier. Diesel averaged 1.666 euros per liter in the province, compared with 1.86 euros in April.
Despite the changes, staffing at stations remains thin this Monday. One worker, Alejandro Pujante, who operates on Avenida de Jijona in Alicante, estimates that customer numbers will be down sharply—fifty to sixty percent fewer customers than in the past. The smaller crowds reflect how quickly consumer behavior adapts to policy shifts and price signals.
A second image shows customers at a gas station in La Nucia, some of whom arrived unaware of the change, still hoping to benefit from the discount. Among the handful of refueling customers that afternoon were a mix of professionals and more casual travelers, all confronted with the new checkout reality. One rider, José Buyo, admitted he did not know the discount had ended. He noted that the impact matters less to him as a motorcyclist, whose fuel consumption is lower than that of a typical car, but he still felt the price shift in his wallet.
Uninformed customers and a changing price landscape
As the discount curtain lifted, some customers remained unintentionally affected by the new pricing. The end of the 20-cent reduction at the pump did not erase the memory of automatic discounts, and some shoppers continued to expect reduced totals at the register, only to discover the new reality upon payment. This reflects a broader trend where price signals and consumer expectations diverge briefly as markets adjust to policy changes.
Industry players emphasize that even with the national policy ending, several gas stations are still applying their own temporary discounts or promotions. These alternate incentives, often around ten cents, are designed to maintain foot traffic and customer loyalty while the broader pricing framework stabilizes. The persistence of these station-level incentives helps soften the impact of the policy shift for some customers, while others recalibrate their purchasing choices based on real-time price information and personal travel needs.
In this context, some operators worry about the medium-term effects on consumption patterns. If trendlines show prices moving upward again or if savings disappear, drivers may curb fueling frequency. The challenge for station owners is balancing price competitiveness with profitability as wholesale prices respond to market forces, seasonality, and strategic decisions by producers and retailers alike.
From a regional perspective, the current moment highlights how price interventions reverberate through everyday behavior. Customers who once relied on predictable discounts must now navigate a more complex pricing environment. For some, the change prompts smarter fueling decisions, while others feel the bite of higher costs more acutely. The industry remains alert to how this dynamic will unfold in the weeks ahead as markets absorb the policy shift and consumer expectations adjust accordingly.
Overall, the situation in Alicante presents a microcosm of how discount policies impact traffic, demand, and price levels across fuel markets. The next phase will reveal whether the new price regime stabilizes at a sustainable level or whether renewed volatility prompts further adjustments by retailers and policymakers alike.