The only city in South Africa where petrol prices are taking a bad turn

An application by wholesalers could result in the rezoning of Nelson Mandela Bay fuel prices from ‘coastal’ to ‘inland’, meaning the city would face price increases of between 76 and 79 cents per litre for petrol and diesel.

Following a strong start to recoveries at the beginning of September, a stable global oil price and a stronger rand versus the dollar will result in a sizeable cut in petrol and diesel prices.

This has translated to a fifth consecutive cut at the pumps, with petrol prices falling between R1.06 and R1.14 per litre and diesel prices falling between R1.12 and R1.14 per litre.

The average international product prices for petrol, diesel and illuminated paraffin decreased during the period under review.

The Rand appreciated against the US Dollar on average during the period under review compared to the previous period.

The average Rand/US Dollar exchange rate from 30 August 2024 to 26 September 2024 was 17.6723, compared to 18.0578 during the previous period.

This led to a lower contribution to the Basic Fuel Prices on petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin by 21.91 c/l, 22.33 c/l, 22.44c/l respectively.

2024 has been a remarkably good year for fuel prices, with year-on-year reductions showing a massive decline over the past 12 months.

In October 2023, petrol 95 prices were at a crazy high of R25.68 per litre, while diesel (0.05%) was sitting at R25.02.

One year later—October 2024—the price cuts put the year-on-year cost reduction at as much as R4.63 per litre for petrol and an even bigger R6.65 per litre for diesel.

Pain for Nelson Mandela Bay

However, not all South Africans benefit equally from these reductions. Residents of Nelson Mandela Bay face a unique challenge that has led to their exclusion from the national petrol price cuts.

According to a report from the Daily Maverick, the Department of Minerals and Energy had no choice but to exclude the metro from the price decreases due to logistical difficulties.

The Liquid Fuel Wholesalers Association (LFWA) revealed that Nelson Mandela Bay is unable to use Port Elizabeth Harbour because a key tanker berth has been damaged.

The damage occurred in June 2024 when a vessel carrying LPG gas collided with the berth, rendering it unusable.

As a result, fuel wholesalers have been forced to transport fuel from the East London Harbour by road, significantly increasing transportation costs.

This shift in logistics means that Nelson Mandela Bay is now treated like an inland region for fuel pricing purposes despite being a coastal city.

To address the situation, Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe approved an application from the LFWA to rezone Nelson Mandela Bay as an inland region.

This rezoning means that while other coastal cities are enjoying lower fuel prices, motorists in Nelson Mandela Bay are paying higher rates.

For example, while the price for 93 petrol in other coastal cities has dropped to R19.94 from R21 in September, the price in Gqeberha (Nelson Mandela Bay) is now R20.73.

Similarly, the price of 95 petrol in other coastal cities has fallen to R20.26 from R21.40, but in Gqeberha, it stands at R21.05.

To quantify the cost to Nelson Mandela Bay motorists, BusinessTech calculated the average petrol tank size based on the top-selling cars and bakkies in South Africa for 2024.

Fuel tanks ranged from 37 litres (found in models like the Suzuki Swift and Toyota Starlet) to 80 litres (in the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger).

The weighted average tank size for these vehicles is approximately 56.8 litres.

Based on this average, motorists filling up with Petrol 93 or 95 will have to fork out about R45 more per tank.

This extra cost will vary depending on the size of the petrol tank.

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