Petrol price to increase by N$1.50

  • 3 Week Ago 25 February 2023 - 2023-02-25 15:45:00
The Ministry of Mines and Energy announced that the price of petrol will increase by 150 cents per litre while the price of diesel will remain unchanged for March 2023.

This means that petrol prices in Walvis Bay will become N$19.78 per litre while the price of diesel will remain N$20.65 per litre. Petrol prices across the country will be adjusted accordingly and will come into effect at 00:01 on 1 March 2023.

After entering input factors into the fuel pricing model, the ministry recorded under-recoveries of 187 cents per litre on petrol and 30 cents per litre on diesel. According to the ministry it foresees turbulent times ahead judging from the unstable situation which continues to persist in the international oil market.

The ministry said that although many central banks continue to increase interest rates to counter inflation, oil prices could still rise in the coming weeks due to carefully managed undersupply and a rebound in demand. “The Russian Federation for example, which has been hit with an embargo by the European Union against its oil industry, has announced a cut in production of about 500 000 barrels per day for the month of March. The International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ (OPEC) have both raised their 2023 demand outlooks due to expectations of a Chinese recovery. In addition, crude oil prices remained somewhat static with Brent crude trading at about USD 84.00 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is trading at about USD 77.00 per barrel,” the ministry explained.

The latest calculations by the ministry indicate that the average price for Unleaded Petrol 95 over the period 1 to 21 February is at USD 100.035 per barrel (compared to USD 99.859 per barrel at the end of Januarys 2023). This is a slight increase of not more than USD 1 over the review period. Additionally the average price for Diesel 50ppm over the period 1 to 21 February 2023 is at USD 108.040 per barrel (compared to USD 118.468 per barrel at the end of January 2023), a decrease of about USD 10 per barrel over the review period. The exchange rate for the period of 1 to 21 February 2023 indicate that the NAD has depreciated against the USD at N$ 17.7676 per USD (compared to N$ 17. 0793 per USD at the end of January 2023).

“The ministry will however continue to work diligently towards ensuring that the security of fuel supply is maintained and that fuel prices are stabilised,” said Andreas Simon, the senior public relations officer for the ministry.