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Local – Petrol is set to drop by 52 cents a litre, while diesel and paraffin prices are set to increase from Wednesday. This comes after the Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources, Gwede Mantashe, announced the adjustment of fuel prices based on current local and international factors, effective from 5 August 2026, in a statement released on Monday.
From Wednesday, a litre of 95 and 93 petrol (LRP and ULP) will come down by 52 cents. A litre of 95 petrol, which currently costs R26.10 in Gauteng, will now cost R25.58, while on the coast, a litre priced at R25.23 will drop to R24.71.
The price of Diesel (0.05% sulphur) will rise by R1.38 per litre, and Diesel (0.005% sulphur) will increase by R1.23 per litre. Illuminating Paraffin (wholesale) will go up by R1.52 a litre, with the Single Maximum National Retail Price for Illuminating Paraffin climbing by R2.03.
The Maximum Retail Price of LPGas will drop by 441 cents per kilogram nationally, and by 503 cents per kilogram in the Western Cape.
Global Tensions Rattle Oil Markets
Global crude oil markets felt renewed strain during the period under review, as tensions between the United States and Iran resurfaced despite a ceasefire memorandum of understanding reached between the two nations only weeks earlier, briefly threatening to push prices sharply higher before easing conditions elsewhere in the market pulled them back down.
“The average Brent Crude oil price decreased from 86.53 US Dollars (USD) to 82.37 USD during the period under review,” said the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources.
The ongoing Russia/Ukraine conflict continued to squeeze diesel and paraffin supplies internationally, with Moscow’s restrictions on diesel exports tightening an already stretched global market and pushing up costs for importing countries like South Africa.
Refining capacity in a key oil-producing region also fell short during this period, the department said, adding that “the situation was compounded by the Middle East Refineries that were operating below capacity.”
The Rand also weakened slightly against the US Dollar, slipping from R16.34 to R16.46 over the review period, adding further upward pressure on diesel and paraffin prices.
The department confirmed a slate levy of 61.38 cents per litre will apply to petrol and diesel from 5 August, down from 113.94 cents per litre previously.
