We’ve just had a peek at September’s petrol and diesel price predictions. We wish we hadn’t because we didn’t like what we saw. You… probably won’t, either. SA motorists have only just come to terms with the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy’s decision to increase fuel prices across the board and we’re already facing another potential increase.

Before you panic, these figures are by no means official and may not reflect what we see at the pumps in September. These are only predictions, coming from the Central Energy Fund’s (CEF) own data. Having said that, the CEF is rarely far off the mark. It arrives at a figure based on the current price of refined oil globally, matching it up against the current Rand/US Dollar exchange.

The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy will decide the country’s official petrol and diesel prices come Wednesday, 6 September 2023.

Petrol price hike on the cards

If you’ve been paying attention to the Rand, the resulting fuel price predictions shouldn’t come as much of a shock. According to economists at the Bureau for Economic Research (BER), the Rand’s sudden surge to R18 to the dollar might have something to do with the “market unease” globally.

It’s not just the Rand at fault here, however easy it is to blame Eskom for the country’s misgivings. The BER also mentioned yet another rise in Brent crude oil prices, a 1.1% increase – the sixth consecutive week this has happened. We won’t bore you with the details, but that’s the gist of it.