South Africa’s Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources has suggested that motorists work from home to ease the blow of a major fuel price increase due on 1 April — a proposal that has drawn immediate scepticism given that the industries which drive the country’s economy are almost entirely incompatible with remote working.
According to Moneyweb, the suggestion came from Robert Maake, director of the Fuel Pricing Mechanism at the department, during a workshop on fuel pricing mechanisms. Maake presented the idea as one of several informal tips for consumers seeking to manage costs in the absence of any confirmed state intervention ahead of the April adjustment, and emphasised that it was a suggestion rather than policy. The department subsequently issued a statement distancing itself from the remarks, clarifying that they did not reflect an official position or policy proposal.
The backdrop to the comments is stark. South Africa is experiencing an acute fuel supply shock triggered by escalating conflict in the Middle East and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices have climbed from below $60 per barrel earlier this year to well above $100, with Brent crude surging above $115 per barrel following renewed attacks linked to Iran, including a strike on infrastructure tied to the South Pars gas field, missile attacks on facilities at Ras Laffan Industrial City in Qatar — the world’s largest liquefied natural gas export hub — drone attacks on a Saudi refinery, and fires at energy sites in Kuwait.
According to the latest daily data from the Central Energy Fund, the price of 93-octane petrol is currently projected to climb by around R4.27 a litre, while 95-octane petrol could increase by about R4.74 a litre. Diesel users face steeper increases, with the wholesale price of 50ppm diesel projected to jump by R7.83 a litre and 500ppm diesel by about R7.73 a litre. If the projections hold, motorists will pay approximately R24.67 a litre for 93-octane petrol and R25.25 a litre for 95-octane petrol inland. The wholesale price of 50ppm diesel could reach R26.64 a litre inland. A 21 cents per litre increase in the general fuel levy, announced by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana in his February budget, also takes effect on the same date, compounding the consumer burden alongside an 8.76% Eskom tariff increase.
Maake acknowledged that various government departments continue to meet daily to assess the situation and that any decision on intervention would be communicated by senior officials. He cautioned against panic-buying, noting that early stockpiling would trigger the self-adjusting slate levy mechanism and ultimately result in double-recovery — meaning consumers would pay for the same price shock twice. Some wholesalers had already raised diesel prices ahead of the official adjustment to discourage hoarding, a practice Maake explicitly warned against.
READ – South Africa in Talks to Secure Alternative Fuel Supply
Minister Gwede Mantashe sought to reassure Parliament on Wednesday that fuel supplies remain secure, telling the National Assembly that South Africa’s crude oil is sourced from Africa rather than the Middle East, and that the Strait of Hormuz was not currently disrupting inbound cargo. Mantashe said the country currently holds eight million barrels of oil in its strategic reserves, to be deployed only in a genuine supply crisis, and that consignments had been secured through to the end of April. Six confirmed vessels carrying product from India and West Africa are en route to South Africa, with supply chains having pivoted to source crude from Nigeria, Angola and Ghana to feed the Natref refinery in Sasolburg, while finished refined product is arriving in volume from India.
The supply side may be stabilising, but the price trajectory is not. The Nelson Mandela Bay Chamber of Commerce warned that as fuel prices rise, so too do the costs of transporting goods to export and domestic markets, which in turn pushes up the prices of consumables, intermediate goods and finished products — a dynamic that could force businesses to reduce headcount, restructure operations or close. Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen, speaking at the Grain SA Congress, noted that fuel already accounts for roughly 12% to 18% of farm production costs, with price increases translating almost immediately into higher expenses across the food supply chain.
The Democratic Alliance, the second-largest party in the government of national unity, has tabled a proposal for Finance Minister Godongwana to halve both the Road Accident Fund levy and the general fuel levy for the duration of the oil price shock. The combined levies currently add R6.35 to the pump price of fuel; a 50% reduction would offset roughly R3.17 per litre of the April increase. The DA’s Mark Burke acknowledged that the proposal would cost the fiscus approximately R6.5 billion a month in foregone revenue but argued the economic cost of inaction — higher inflation, weaker GDP and squeezed household budgets — would outweigh the fiscal hit. No government decision on any levy relief or broader intervention had been announced as of Wednesday.