By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Department of Petroleum and Mineral Resources (DPMR) has published the official fuel price adjustments that will take effect on Wednesday.
The department announced on Tuesday that the price of petrol will rise by between 52 cents (95 Unleaded) and 55 cents (93 Unleaded), while diesel will go up by between 82 cents (500ppm) and 84 cents (50ppm). Illuminated paraffin is set to rise by 67 cents.
This follows four consecutive months of price decreases.
Following the increases, a litre of 95 Unleaded will cost R21.08 at the coast and R21.87 inland, with 93 Unleaded costing around R21.79. The wholesale price of 50ppm diesel will rise to R18.65 at the coast and R19.41 inland.
The increases come as a result of higher international oil prices.
June saw extreme volatility in the oil price because of Israel and the United States’ attacks on Iran, while the rand remained surprisingly resilient in the face of the resultant market turbulence.
Wide fluctuations in the oil price saw local fuel price recoveries swing from a small over-recovery to a sizeable under-recovery, leading to increases at the pumps.
Local fuel prices are largely driven by international product prices, which are determined by global oil prices and the rand/dollar exchange.
The average international product prices for Petrol, Diesel and Illuminating Paraffin increased during the period under review.
The Rand appreciated against the US Dollar during the period under review, on average, when compared to the previous period.
The average Rand/US Dollar exchange rate for the period 30 May 2025 to 26 June 2025 was 17.8443 compared to 18.1146 during the previous period.
This led to a lower contribution to the Basic Fuel Prices on petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin by 15.71 c/l, 16.35 c/l, 16.05 c/l, respectively.
In line with the provisions of the Self-Adjusting Slate Levy Mechanism, the Slate Levy on petrol and diesel will remain at 0.00 c/l with effect from 2 July 2025.
However, the fuel price situation in South Africa has been aggravated by a rise in fuel taxes, which came into effect at the beginning of June, leading to smaller-than-expected fuel price decreases that month.
The general fuel levy rose by 16 cents per litre for petrol and 15 cents per litre for diesel, raising total fuel taxes in South Africa to R6.37 for petrol.