From Wednesday, 2 April 2025, South African motorists will pay less at the pump.
Fuel prices in South Africa: Official adjustments from Wednesday, 2 April 2025
PLEASE NOTE: The petrol price adjustments listed below are directly quoted from the Department of Energy’s monthly press release. Despite our best efforts to ensure accurate reporting, it is still the sole responsibility of the reader to double-check petrol prices. Swisher Post, its parent company, partners and affiliates shall not be held liable for any consequence that arises from the journalistic duties performed in sharing this content.
The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy has confirmed a significant drop in the prices of petrol, diesel, illuminating paraffin, and LPGAS.
- Petrol prices will drop by up to 76 cents, bringing relief to consumers.
- Diesel prices are set to decrease by as much as 90 cents per litre.
- The stronger rand and lower global oil prices played a key role in these reductions.
Here’s a look at the official fuel price adjustments for April:
Inland
| TYPE | PRICE (p/l) | CHANGE |
| Petrol 95 | R21.62 | -R0.72 |
| Petrol 93 | R21.51 | -R0.58 |
| Diesel 0.05%* | R20.68 | -R0.84 |
| Diesel 0.005%* | R19.35 | -R0.86 |
Coastal
| TYPE | PRICE (p/l) | CHANGE |
| Petrol 95 | R20.83 | -R0.72 |
| Petrol 93 | R20.72 | -R0.58 |
| Diesel 0.05%* | R18.69 | -R0.84 |
| Diesel 0.005%* | R18.59 | -R0.86 |
Factors impacting fuel prices in April 2025
Two key elements led to the fuel price decreases announced for April:
1. Falling international oil prices
The Department confirmed that the average international prices for petrol, diesel, and illuminating paraffin decreased during the review period (28 February to 27 March 2025).
This decline played a central role in reducing the Basic Fuel Price (BFP).
2. A stronger rand
The rand appreciated against the US dollar, averaging R18.30, an improvement from R18.50 in the previous month. This appreciation reduced the cost of importing fuel, leading to the following reductions in the BFP:
- Petrol: ↓ 11.72 cents
- Diesel: ↓ 12.42 cents
- Illuminating paraffin: ↓ 12.24 cents
Despite the price drops, the Fuel Levy and Carbon Fuel Levy have been increased. From 2 April 2025:
- The Fuel Levy rises to R3.99/litre for petrol and R3.87/litre for diesel.
- The Carbon Fuel Levy increases by 3 cents/litre for both fuels.
- The Road Accident Fund (RAF) Levy remains unchanged at R2.18/litre.
- Transport tariffs have been adjusted, ranging from 0.0 to 7.5 cents/litre for petrol and diesel and 0.0 to 3.4 cents/litre for illuminating paraffin. These changes differ by zone and affect final pump prices regionally.
- The Slate Levy, which helps recover previous under- or over-recoveries, remains unchanged at 0.00 c/l.
What goes into the final retail price of fuel in South Africa?
Determining the final retail price of petrol in South Africa relies heavily on the rand’s performance in currency markets and oil price movements.
Using this information, the CEF can formulate basic fuel price (BFP) estimates which, in essence, offer South African importers a snapshot into the cost of buying petrol from an international refinery, transporting the product and ensuring it against possible losses at sea and on land.
However, before the retail price of petrol is finalised at petrol stations, several additional costs are included in the BFP:
Government levies
- IP tracer levy (reimbursement to the oil industry for buying IP tracer dye and injecting it into IP to curtail the mixing of IP and diesel)
- General Fuel levy (tax levied by the government)
- Slate levy (to finance the cumulative under-recovery of the industry)
- RAF levy (to compensate for people involved in road crashes and accidents)
- Petroleum products levy (reimbursement to the pipeline users for the applicable NERSA tariff on transporting fuel through the pipeline)
Additional costs
- Wholesale margin (markup to the price of a product to account for wholesaling costs)
- Service cost recoveries
- Storage, handling and delivery costs
- Distribution costs
- Dealers margin (commission to the fuel pump dealers for retail operation)
- Zone differential (applicable to inland regions)
- Customs and excise duty
Petrol price adjustments are generally made on the first Wednesday of every month by the Department of Energy.