Dublin, Sept. 18, 2026 (Lusa) - The Irish presidency of the Council of Europe has stated on Friday that it had asked the European Commission to resume discussions on the taxation of oil companies' windfall profits, after Portugal and other member states had called for a European solution to the energy crisis.
«Without wishing to pre-empt today's discussion, I imagine this will be an opportunity for the various participants to put forward some initial views on their perspective regarding a tax on windfall profits in the energy sector,» said Ireland's minister of finance, Simon Harris, whose country currently holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) for this half-year.
«There are differing positions across the various member states and, subsequently, I am likely to ask the European Commission to return to this matter, presenting some further reflections at the formal Ecofin meeting in October in Luxembourg,» added the minister, speaking on his arrival at the meeting of eurozone and EU ministers of finance in Dublin.
Harris added that «this format is very much to the liking of those who signed the letter».
An initial debate on the matter is scheduled for today; the Irish minister decided, as a «prudent» measure, to include it in the EU ministers of finance lunch following receipt of the letter from the six countries – Portugal, Germany, Austria, Spain, Italy and Poland – containing this request.
The minister promised to act as an «impartial mediator», but it is clear that Ireland, like other countries, has already approved a measure of this kind in the past, following the energy crisis triggered by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Portuguese Government suggested today that the European Commission use the national methodology as the basis for a possible European solution to the taxation of oil companies' windfall profits, a proposal that has so far been rejected by Brussels.
«There will be an initial discussion today, as the six countries – including Portugal – that signed the letter will set out their position, seeking to convince the Commission of their arguments and that the Commission should put forward a joint proposal,» said minister of finance Joaquim Miranda Sarmento.
Speaking to the Lusa news agency as he arrived for the informal meeting of eurozone ministers of finance in Dublin, the Portuguese minister of finance considered that an EU-wide measure, rather than a national one, would provide «safeguards in the sense that it would now apply across the whole of Europe and would therefore be more harmonised amongst all member states».
«Portugal has, of course, already taken steps in this direction, and a proposal is currently under discussion in parliament; therefore, even the Portuguese methodology itself could serve as a starting point for defining a European methodology,» he suggested.
Portugal, Germany, Austria, Spain, Italy and Poland have, through two letters addressed to the European institutions, advocated a common approach to taxing the windfall profits of oil companies, arguing that the war in the Middle East is putting pressure on energy prices whilst oil companies are recording high levels of profitability and refining margins that exceed the rise in the price of crude oil.
Brussels has, however, taken the view that the taxation of windfall profits falls within the competence of the member states.
Portugal has approved a proposal to introduce a Temporary Solidarity Levy on the Oil Sector, applicable to profits for 2026, which provides for a rate of 33% on that part of the relevant profits which exceeds by more than 20% the average profits recorded in 2024 and 2025 by companies in the crude oil and refining sectors.
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