The R600 fuel price difference motorists are paying in South Africa

South African motorists are paying significantly more for fuel this month compared to prices in March, and this is despite the government’s efforts to shield consumers from drastic price hikes.

The main cause for April’s drastic fuel price increases is the conflict in the Middle East, which led to the closing of the Strait of Hormuz – through which 20% of the world’s oil supply flows.

This caused global oil prices to skyrocket, with the average price of Brent Crude oil escalating from $69.08 per barrel to $93.67 per barrel during the period under review.

As a result, the Basic Fuel Price (BFP) increased by R5.26 for petrol and R9.49 per litre during the review period.

Petroleum products are also purchased in US dollars, which means the rand’s depreciation from R16 to R16.64 against the currency during the month also played a role.

Things could have been even worse for South Africa’s motorists, following the government’s announcement that it is also raising fuel taxes during the 2026 Budget Speech.

This plan was put on hold temporarily, and it was instead announced that the government would implement short-term relief by reducing the General Fuel Levy by R3 per litre from 1 April until 5 May 2026.

All of these factors led to petrol prices increasing by a little over R3 per litre, and diesel by more than R7 per litre.

Below is a table showing the difference in what inland motorists are paying for a full tank of petrol and diesel since the fuel price adjustment in the first week of April.

It must be noted that the price of diesel here is the wholesale price, and prices at the pump may differ at different petrol stations.

This shows that motorists are paying anywhere from R90 to R600 more per tank compared to last month, depending on the choice of petrol or diesel and fuel tank size.

The average petrol driver is spending around R170 per tank more, while the average diesel consumer is spending around R413 more per tank.

Next month’s outlook

Considering that the Middle East conflict is still not entirely resolved – despite a temporary ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran – fuel prices are expected to increase again next month.

According to the latest data from the Central Energy Fund (CEF), both petrol and diesel prices are showing an under-recovery, which may lead to higher prices for both in May.

During the current review period, the BFP for petrol is showing an under-recovery of between 82c and R1 per litre, while for diesel it is around R4.50 per litre for both grades.

When taking the movement in international product prices and the shift in rand/dollar exchange, the data points towards a total under-recovery of R3.63 per litre of 95 petrol and R10.84 per litre for 0.005% diesel.

This is already an improvement over the indicators earlier this week, which pointed towards a more than R4 per litre increase for petrol prices, and over R13 per litre for diesel.

It must be noted that the Central Energy Fund’s fuel price data is only based on the average recovery of the basic fuel price and does not predict the exact increases at the pump.

This data also fluctuates throughout the month and can change right up to the official announcement, which is made by the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR).