October's official fuel prices are here – with a R1+ drop for petrol and diesel

It’s that time of the month, and once again, the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy has blessed our Monday morning with news that South Africa’s official petrol and diesel prices are set to go down (again) on Wednesday, 2 October.

This isn’t some minor decrease, either. The Department has continued the trend we’ve become rather used to in the back-end of 2024, with yet another R1+ price drop in store for both petrol and diesel drivers in South Africa. Unfortunately, those buyers of LPGAS will have to contend with a minor R0.23 increase.

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The news of yet another price decrease won’t come as a surprise to anybody who’s followed Stuff in its pursuit to keep up with the Central Energy Fund’s (CEF) continual fuel price updates throughout September. The CEF is responsible for tracking the various economic factors that contribute toward adjusting the fuel price daily, before eventually reporting its findings to the Department at the end of the month.

Those factors, primarily, involve the price of refined oil internationally as well as the average Rand/US Dollar exchange rate. Throughout September, the price of petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin decreased, while the Rand continued to appreciate against the Dollar, leading to the drop in prices as seen below.

The Department cannot artificially inflate or deflate the fuel price across South Africa, though it does have some control over the Self-Adjusting Slate Levy Mechanism. For October, however, the Slate Levy on petrol and diesel will remain at R0.