The price of petrol has skyrocketed to R26.63 per litre in South Africa, nearly two years after Minister Gwede Mantashe said that fuel should only cost around R14 per litre.
Back in 2024, the Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources previously stated that petrol and diesel should cost no more than R14 per litre and that the government would review the fuel price formula in an effort to reduce prices and provide financial relief to consumers.
“The price of fuel is part of the cost of living. When the fuel price increases, the cost of living in South Africa also rises. This is not good for society,” Mantashe previously said.
“The state must intervene to bring energy prices down in the interest of the South African community.”
In the two years since these statements were made, the government has made no progress finding a long-term solution to reduce fuel prices in South Africa.
However, the National Treasury has implemented short-term relief measures to cushion the blow to consumers dealt by a surge in global oil prices due to the war between Iran and the United States.
In April 2026, the Treasury announced a temporary R3-per-litre reduction in the General Fuel Levy for both petrol and diesel, which was supposed to end at the start of May.
However, it later announced that the relief measure would be extended to May and, partially, to June, re-introducing the full fuel tax in stages.
Right now, the cost of fuel has been reduced by R3 per litre for petrol, and R3.93 per litre for diesel.
Half of the GFL will be re-added in June, and the full amount will return in July, ending the relief period.
In addition to the tax relief, the Treasury announced that the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources has initiated a review of the fuel price formula used to calculate how fuel prices are regulated in South Africa.
This is the latest in a long series of similar statements issued by the government over the years, none of which led to a significant change.
Mantashe’s R14-per-litre petrol statements
In October 2024, Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Mantashe told delegates at the Africa Oil Week Conference that petrol and diesel should cost R14 per litre.
He added that his department was in high-level discussions with the National Treasury to find ways to reduce fuel prices.
Mantashe’s statements followed similar remarks made by President Cyril Ramaphosa in his 2024 State of the Nation Address, in which he announced a review of administered prices in South Africa.
This review was set to examine both fuel and electricity prices to evaluate where the pricing formula could be improved to reduce costs for households.
Two years later, and South Africa is using the same formula to calculate what people are spending at the pumps.
NWU Business School economist Professor Raymond Parsons recently said it is possible for South Africa to address the ongoing global energy shock without jeopardising its fiscal credibility.
He said this includes the urgent overhaul and reform of South Africa’s fuel price regulatory structure by the ministerial task team, wrote Daily Investor.
This team is coordinating the government’s holistic response to mitigate the impact of rising prices on the cost of living, fuel, and food security.
However, Parsons emphasised that timelines should be set to finalise this review.
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