Price of fuel accelerating after respite
Motorists feel the pinch as costs rise
PETROL and diesel prices are rising again, after motorists enjoyed a brief respite in recent months.
The AA Ireland February fuel price survey found that petrol is up three cents per litre from €1.68 in January to €1.71 this month.
Diesel rose by four cents per litre, from €1.68 to €1.72, as the price of crude oil creeps up again. However, electric car users are set to benefit from falling electricity prices, seeing their bill drop to €900 per year, down from €967 in December, to cover the national average of 17,000 kilometres.
The price hike at the pumps follows four consecutive months of drops, which started in October of last year.
Blake Boland, head of communications for AA Ireland, said he was concerned about the impact on drivers.
He said: ‘Motorists in Ireland are feeling the pinch at the moment, with consistent increases in the cost of running a car in recent years. We had a steady drop in fuel prices over the last four months. We are disappointed to see that trend coming to an abrupt halt.’
He continued: ‘The price of crude oil also rose over the last month from around $79 per barrel to around $83 per barrel. Although only a small rise, it is likely to have a knock-on impact at the pumps.’
Mr Boland forecast that prices were unlikely to remain steady, amid further instability in oilproducing regions and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
‘We saw global stocks reducing in January, and any disruption of supply could raise prices further,’ he warned. ‘We are also edging closer to the phased reintroduction of excise duties that were postponed late last year. They will ultimately see prices rising by eight cents per litre for petrol and six cents per litre for diesel.’
In last October’s budget, Finance Minister Michael McGrath deferred the final tranche of fuel duty excise increases. They will come in two equal instalments, with the first taking effect on April 1.
AA Ireland said motorists could save on fuel costs by reducing their top motorway speed from 120kph to 100kph. This could result in a 29% drop in the fuel bill, it advised.
Meanwhile, the €900 average bill for electric car owners remains far higher than it was before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine two years ago.
However, Mr Boland said the trend in this area looks set to continue downwards.
‘With the wholesale price of electricity coming down steadily last year and this year, EV drivers are seeing the benefits in their pockets,’ he said. ‘We anticipate that electricity providers will continue to pass on the reduced costs to the motorist. We think there is plenty more scope for prices to drop.’
The motoring organisation has
‘Coming to an abrupt halt’
‘EV drivers need to shop around’
calculated that a similarly sized diesel vehicle will cost approximately €2,047 to cover the same annual distance of 17,000km.
Mr Boland said EV owners with smart meters, who take advantage of cheap night-time rates, could see their yearly bill drop to just under €300.
He said: ‘EV drivers need to shop around to get the cheapest rates possible on their home electricity. There are new entrants to the market and existing providers are dropping their prices on many of their tariffs. Spending an hour or two on research and switching rates could save you a lot of money over the next couple of years.’