* Update: This story was published on 31 August and since then the official September fuel price adjustments have been announced by the Department of Energy. Click here to here to read our latest fuel price update.
Johannesburg - South African motorists can look forward to substantial savings at the pumps from next week, but it’s far better news for those driving petrol vehicles.
Month-end data released by the Central Energy Fund gives us a clearer picture of what to expect when prices change on Wednesday, September 7.
Give or take a few cents, the price of 95 Unleaded petrol is likely to come down by around R2.35 per litre, while the cheaper 93 Unleaded is looking set for a decrease of around R2.18. This would bring the price of 95 ULP down to R22.42 at the coast and R23.07 inland, where 93 ULP would theoretically retail at R22.81.
Diesel and illuminating paraffin are looking set for reductions of between 77 cents and 78 cents, which is substantially lower than earlier predictions.
Of course, the usual disclaimer applies here – the predictions are based on unaudited data and we’ll only know the fuel prices once they’re announced by the Department of Energy in the coming days.
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Diesel prices soaring
Earlier in the month, it appeared as though bigger decreases, in the region of R2.50 for petrol and R2.30 for diesel, were on the cards. However, a slightly weaker rand and higher international oil prices, versus earlier in the month, have eaten into September’s savings. This is particularly true in the case of diesel, whose international prices have increased by around 20% since the beginning of August, although the prices have thankfully softened in recent days.
Although September’s fuel prices will be extremely high in historical terms (remember the R20 per litre doomsday everyone dreaded?) an easing of more than R2 for petrol will bring some welcome relief to motorists.
That said, the news is not as good for general inflation as most goods are transported by diesel power and those decreases are substantially smaller.
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