R10-billion petrol price relief plan for South Africa

The South African government has proposed withdrawing R10 billion as a relief measure to protect motorists from record-high petrol and diesel prices.

The Standing Committee on Appropriations adopted its report on the Second Special Appropriation Bill which proposes the withdrawal of R10 billion from the National Revenue Fund.

This was revealed by parliament on Thursday, 8 October 2026 and comes after the Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, tabled the bill on 31 July 2026.

It was subsequently referred to the Committee on 4 August 2026 for consideration and reporting to the National Assembly.

“The Bill provides for the transfer of R10 billion to the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources to stabilise fuel costs and protect consumers from fuel price volatility arising from the current conflict in the Middle East,” it said.

Chairperson of the Committee, Dr Mmusi Maimane, said motorists should receive immediate relief because the funds are available from the National Revenue Fund.

“As Parliament and representatives of the people, we must ensure that fuel prices are reduced so that citizens can enter December with some relief,” Dr Maimane said.

The Committee said the R10 billion expenditure must achieve its intended objective and be supported by detailed expenditure reports.

Furthermore, it recommended that the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources jointly ensure that National Treasury and the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources report to Parliament on potential future shocks and the circumstances in which basic fuel price relief and levy measures would be used.

A second petrol price relief measure for South Africa

The war in the Middle East has had devastating consequences for global energy prices, causing oil to skyrocket past $100 per barrel.

As of October 2026, South African motorists are paying R30.25 per litre for petrol and over R33.29 per litre for diesel.

Worse still, prices are expected to increase yet again in November, with early data from the Central Energy Fund pointing to increases of R3.35 per litre for petrol and R1.97 per litre for diesel, respectively.

Earlier this year, when prices first spiked after the United States launched strikes against Iran, the South African government implemented a R3-per-litre cut to the General Fuel Levy (GFL) to cushion consumers from the resulting fuel price hikes.

This measure was implemented in April and was intended to last only a month; however, the National Treasury later extended the tax relief cut to May.

The GFL cut was phased out in June and July. While motorists and civil action groups demanded that the measure be extended, the government warned that the relief effort was a short-term solution and that the lost fuel tax revenue would need to be repaid, one way or another.