What with the current Rand-to-Dollar conversion rate, and the continually rising price of refined oil globally, it’s no wonder that the most recent round of data from the Central Energy Fund (CEF) looks so grim. If you thought September’s big price hike was worth getting upset over, you won’t be looking forward to the nearly R2 increase slated for diesel prices come October.
A hefty month for diesel
Don’t panic just yet. We’ve still got two weeks to go before the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy decides the country’s official petrol and diesel prices. So why are we discussing them now? Because the CEF makes unofficial predictions on the coming month’s fuel prices, based on the Rand/Dollar exchange rate, and the price of refined oil. Even so, the CEF is rarely wrong, so it’s worth paying attention.
The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy will decide the country’s official petrol and diesel prices come midnight on Wednesday, 4 October 2023.
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Here are the fuel price predictions (so far) for September 2023:
- Petrol 93: increase of 115 cents per litre (R1.15)
- Petrol 95: increase of 123 cents per litre (R1.23)
- Diesel 0.05%: increase of 197 cents per litre (R1.97)
- Diesel 0.005%: increase of 188 cents per litre (R1.88)
- Illuminating Paraffin: increase of 180 cents per litre (R1.80)
We’ve been expecting an upward trend in the country’s petrol prices since August, thanks to the shortage of crude oil the US is currently facing. That’s expected to be the case for some time, with a barrel of Brent crude oil fetching $94, up from the $84 it was in mid-August.