The cabinet increases the “solidarity contribution” by 3.2 billion in the oil and gas sector

The government is imposing an additional € 3.2 billion in profit tax on companies with activities in the refining of crude oil, natural gas, coal and oil industries.

The tax applies retroactively to 2022 for excess profits from the fossil sector in the Netherlands. With that, the Netherlands is implementing the solidarity contribution, on which agreements were concluded by the EU on 6 October.

This tax is used to pay for support measures for the sharp rise in energy bills of consumers and businesses. The rationale is that companies have benefited excessively from the rise in energy prices caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

It is estimated that the price cap alone will cost consumers 23.5 billion euros. The scheme for small and medium-sized enterprises could cost up to € 3 billion.