Better fill up: Significant fuel price increases are coming on Wednesday, May 6.
Image: ChatGPT
South Africans will be hit with yet another punishing fuel price increase from Wednesday, May 6, with the price of petrol set to rise by R3.27 per litre and diesel by R5.27 per litre.
In the case of diesel, this is lower than the R6.19 increase that was announced on Monday, as an earlier miscalculation on the part of the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources failed to take into account the additional temporary tax reduction of 93 cents for diesel fuel.
From Wednesday, a litre of 95 Unleaded petrol will cost R25.80 at the coast and R26.63 in the inland regions, where 93 Unleaded will retail for R26.52.
But how will that affect your monthly budget?
How much more you'll pay per tank from May 6.
Image: ChatGPT
Filling your small car’s tank with 30 litres of petrol will cost R98 extra, while a 40-litre refuel will set you back an additional R130. Make that R163 for a 50 litre tank and R196 for a 60 litre refuel.
Diesel customers will have to dig far deeper. The majority of diesel-powered bakkies and SUVs in South Africa have 80-litre tanks, so a 70-litre refuel will now cost R369 more than before.
According to our calculations, based on diesel now costing around R33.12 at the coast and R33.88 in Gauteng after a R2.50 retail margin is factored in, that 70 litre tank will now cost between R2,318 and R2,372.
Filling a smaller SUV with 50 litres of diesel will cost an additional R263.50, with a tank costing R1,656 at the coast and R1.694 inland.
While that would be a hard pill to swallow under any circumstances, these increases come just a month after April’s massive diesel increase of R7.51 for 50ppm - which itself would have pushed the price of a 70 litre refuel up by R525 versus March prices.
What you'll pay for fuel from May 6.
Image: IOL
May’s fuel price increases are being driven almost entirely by higher international product costs, with the rand playing only a marginal role of roughly three to five cents in the overall pricing structure.
Consumers could face even steeper increases in June if there is no resolution to the conflict in the Middle East.
Prices for May were calculated on Brent crude averaging below $101 per barrel during the most recent pricing review period. However, renewed uncertainty following stalled US-Iran peace talks has pushed oil trading into the $113 to $126 range over the past week.
Adding further pressure on motorists is the gradual unwinding of South Africa’s temporary fuel tax relief. The support measure is set to be reduced to R1.50 per litre for petrol and R1.96 for diesel in June, before being fully phased out in July. The broader R3 per litre relief remains in place until June 2, after which it will fall away entirely, having already been lifted to R3.93 for diesel.
National Treasury and the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources confirmed last week that the R3 fuel tax relief would stay unchanged for petrol during May, while diesel would receive an additional 93c adjustment for the month.
IOL Motoring