R1.64 petrol price cut for South Africa in a year
On 1 January 2024, a litre of Petrol Unleaded 93 cost R22.79. At the end of the year, the price declined to R21.15 per litre.
This means South African motorists paid R1.64 less for a litre of petrol in December 2024 than they did at the beginning of the year.
South Africa’s fuel prices are mainly affected by the internal oil price and the rand’s exchange rate against the US Dollar.
South Africa imports most of its crude oil, which is used to produce petrol and diesel. The oil is traded in US dollars.
When the rand is weak, oil imports are more expensive, which leads to higher petrol prices. When the rand is strong, petrol prices can be cut.
When the year started, the rand was trading at R18.29 to the US dollar and a barrel of Brent crude cost $77.
The rand weakened significantly as the generation election loomed, trading at over R19 to the greenback in February and April.
The price of oil also increased in the first few months of 2024. It rose from $75.89 on 2 January 2024 to $91.17 on 5 April 2024.
However, the oil price came under pressure for the rest of the year and declined to $73.79 on 27 December 2024.
The rand also strengthened after a favourable general election outcome and the formation of a government of national unity.
It improved to R17.10 to the US Dollar in September 2024, which helped to drive down the petrol price to under R21 per litre in October 2024.
Over the last three months of the year, the rand weakened against the greenback, which saw the petrol price rise again.
It broke to R21 per litre again in December, when the price of Petrol Unleaded 93 increased to R21.15.
The Department of Petroleum and Mineral Resources announced further petrol price increases on 28 December 2024, which took effect on 1 January 2025.
The price of Petrol Unleaded 93 increased by 19.00 cents per litre due to the weaker rand at the end of the year.
The average ZAR/USD exchange rate in December was R18.11 compared to R17.93 during the previous month.
The Central Energy Fund (CEF) said the weaker rand led to a higher contribution to the basic fuel prices of petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin.
The table below shows how South Africa’s petrol price changed over the last thirteen months.
| Date | Fuel Price |
| 2023/12/06 | 22.79 |
| 2024/01/03 | 22.17 |
| 2024/02/07 | 22.92 |
| 2024/03/06 | 24.13 |
| 2024/04/03 | 24.78 |
| 2024/05/01 | 25.15 |
| 2024/06/05 | 23.91 |
| 2024/07/03 | 22.86 |
| 2024/08/07 | 22.71 |
| 2024/09/04 | 21.79 |
| 2024/10/02 | 20.73 |
| 2024/11/06 | 20.98 |
| 2024/12/04 | 21.15 |
| 2025/01/01 | 21.34 |
USD ZAR exchange rate
Brent crude price in USD
South African petrol price in ZAR
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