Motorists to dig deeper for fuel this month

DAILY NEWS Reporter in Dodoma

MOTORISTS have started the New Year digging deeper into their pockets following hiked prices of petroleum products. Energy and Water Utilities Regulatory Authority (EWURA) said yesterday in a statement that price hike for the month of January was driven by changes in the world oil market prices and Bulk Procurement System (BPS) premiums.

EWURA report showed that the retail prices of petrol increased by 8/- per litre which is equivalent to 0.35 per cent. Also, prices of diesel increased by 34 per litre which is equivalent to 1.71 per cent while the prices of kerosene jumped by 89/- per litre representing 4.57 per cent.

Similarly, compared to the last month publication, the wholesale prices of petrol, diesel and kerosene have also increased by 7.56/- per litre or 0.37 per cent), 33.97/- per litre (1.81 per cent) and 88.73/- (4.85 per cent) respectively. In Dar es Salaam, the new retail prices for petrol, diesel and kerosene in the month under review will be 2,167/-, 2,018/- and 2,031/- respectively.

Similarly the retail and wholesale prices for petrol and diesel imported to the country through Tanga port have increased compared to the previous month due to changes in the world market and BPS premiums. Kerosene prices in Tanga remained unchanged because there was no new consignment of kerosene imported in December 2017.

Therefore, the retail prices of petrol and diesel in the Northern regions have increased by 60/- per litre (equivalent to 2.78 per cent) and 69/- per litre (3.47 per cent), respectively. Likewise, the wholesale prices of petrol and diesel have increased by 59.68/- per litre (equivalent to 2.93 per cent) and 69.02/- per litre (equivalent to 3.67 per cent).

It should be noted that, most of the consignments of petroleum products received through Dar es Salaam port last month are based on the world oil market prices of October 2017 while the consignment received through Tanga port is based on the world oil market prices of November last year. The world oil market prices of November are more than 6 per cent higher than the prices of October 2017.