With just a week left before the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy fiddles with the country’s petrol and diesel pumps, the Central Energy Fund (CEF) has hit us with another round of predictions, promising South Africa’s fifth consecutive fuel price drop after the horrendous start to the year.

As usual, we’ll need to wait until the first Wednesday of the new month to see those prices actually take effect. In this case, that’ll be next Wednesday, 4 September, after which – barring any major economic waves, both locally and internationally, we could see prices knocked down by as much as 91c for petrol drivers.

One hell of a week ahead

It’s worth mentioning that this isn’t a done deal yet. The CEF, a state-owned energy company responsible for reporting directly to the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy, offers the most complete information regarding the country’s fuel price, but the final decision rests in the Department’s hands at the end of the month.

The CEF keeps its eye on the two biggest factors that influence South Africa’s monthly fuel prices; the Rand/US Dollar exchange, and the price of refined oil globally. It offers daily insights using this data, after which the Department reviews all the information before coming to an official decision before the first Wednesday of the new month.

Thanks to the Rand’s growing strength throughout August, the CEF has predicted an “over-recovery” of prices – meaning a drop in prices for residents. Also contributing to the expected “over-recovery” is the so-far stable price of oil globally, with prices regularly sitting under the $80/barrel price throughout most of August. Should the Dollar spike or the price of oil rise massively over the coming week, it could leave the CEF’s predictions in an awkward position.