Six European Union countries have urged the bloc to discuss an EU-wide windfall tax on oil companies' profits amid surging energy prices linked to the Middle East conflict.

Germany, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Poland, and Austria sent a joint letter to Ireland, which holds the EU's rotating presidency, requesting that the issue be placed on the agenda for the next meeting of EU finance ministers in Dublin on September 18 and 19.

The ministers cited one of the biggest supply shocks in decades and widespread discontent over the rising cost of living. They argued that government measures so far have not sufficiently reduced or stabilized prices for businesses and citizens.

"Oil companies are enjoying overall profitability and margins on refined products that exceed the rise in crude oil prices," the letter stated. It called for an EU-wide framework to tax windfall profits, drawing lessons from a similar temporary measure introduced in 2022 after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The new approach would include more targeted analysis of foreign profits from multinational oil companies.

The push follows sharp increases in oil prices. Oil prices have risen about 25 percent since the start of the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran in February, while European diesel prices have climbed more than 70 percent and gasoline prices around 20 percent.

The demand revives earlier calls from several of the countries this year for levies on oil firm profits. German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil has emphasized that energy companies must not exploit consumers during the crisis and that excessive profits should be returned to the public.

Portugal recently approved its own 33 percent windfall tax on extraordinary profits earned by oil and refining companies in 2026. The levy applies to profits exceeding by more than 20 percent the average from 2024 and 2025, with revenues intended to offset higher fuel costs for households and vulnerable businesses.

Analyses from groups tracking the sector indicate that major oil companies have reported substantial earnings in Europe this year, with some doubling profits in the latest quarter compared to the prior year. The proposed tax would aim to capture a portion of those gains for public relief.

The letter remains a request for discussion rather than a formal proposal, and divisions among EU members on the issue persist.