“More competition = best price”, proclaims the Quebec Ministry of the Economy on its X account, formerly Twitter. The Quebec government has indeed announced earlier today the withdrawal of the floor price for petrol and diesel.
“The government thus wants to encourage competition and, ultimately, ensure that consumers pay the best possible price for the pump,” read the press release issued by the Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Energy (Meie).
The floor price, under which it was forbidden to sell fuel, had been established to protect small independent retailers from offensives of price reductions at a loss by large oil banners.
-However, the situation became untenable with the abolition of the federal carbon tax in other provinces by the Carney government, the fuel suddenly becoming much more expensive with us than in neighboring provinces since Quebec continues to participate in the carbon stock market.
From 2026, traders will have the obligation to transmit in real time any change in sale price of fuel to the energy management. This will make this information accessible on the web.
“The floor price, established in the 1990s, no longer has its place. The Federal Competition Office will also hold additional tools to monitor prices in each of the regions, “said Samuel Poulin, deputy for Beauce-Sud and parliamentary assistant to Christine Fréchette, Minister of Economy, Innovation and Energy.
