EFFECTIVE August 5, Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources Gwede Mantashe announced the monthly price adjustment to petrol, diesel and other fuel products based on current local and international factors.

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Price adjustments are as follows:

• Petrol 93 (ULP and LRP) decreased by R0.52 per litre.
• Petrol 95 (ULP and LRP) decreased by R0.52 per litre.
• Diesel (0.05% sulphur) increased by R1.38 per litre.
• Diesel (0.005% sulphur) increased by R1.38 per litre.
• Illuminating Paraffin (wholesale) increased by R1.52.

The price adjustments are due to a number of factors, including the ongoing tensions between the US and Iran, a depreciating rand and the Russia and Ukraine war.

1. Crude oil prices

The average Brent Crude oil price decreased from 86.53 US dollars (USD) to 82.37 USD during the period under review. The impact of renewed US/Iran tensions which caused the price to increase up to a $100 mark, was offset by the fact that the prices had already decreased significantly the previous month and the first half of this month due to the ceasefire memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran, as well as lower global demand for crude oil.

2. International petroleum product prices

The average international product prices of petrol decreased during the period under review, while the prices of diesel and illuminating paraffin increased due to supply shortages caused by the Russia and Ukraine conflict which resulted in diesel export restrictions by Russia. The situation was compounded by the Middle East Refineries that were operating below capacity.

3. Rand/US dollar exchange rate

The rand depreciated slightly on average, against the dollar (from 16.34 to 16.46 rand per USD) during the period under review when compared to the previous one.

4. Implementation of the Slate Levy

The cumulative slate amounted to a negative balance of R7.418b for petrol and diesel of at the end of June 2026. In line with the provisions of the Self-Adjusting Slate Levy Mechanism, the slate levy of 61.38 c/l will be implemented in the price structures of petrol and diesel with effect from August 5. The Slate Levy has decreased by 52.56 c/l from 113.94 to 61.38 c/l.

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