Drivers pay €100 a year more for fuel, new hikes coming
MOTORISTS have been warned that petrol and diesel prices are going to keep rising.
It comes as prices at the pumps have already surged to a three-year high.
The higher prices mean the average driver is now shelling out €100 more for petrol this year than they did over the course of last year.
AA Ireland’s Conor Faughnan said increases in the cost of crude oil and the rise in the value of the dollar were pushing up pump prices for Irish drivers.
The surge in retail prices, due to rises in the cost of crude, have prompted top producers Saudi Arabia and Russia to consider boosting their output in the second half of the year.
This sent the cost of Brent crude oil down slightly yesterday.
But crude price rises that have already occurred meant prices at the pumps were likely to keep going up, Mr Faughnan said. The price hikes mean petrol and diesel were now at their most expensive since 2015.
“All the indications are pointing in one direction – to more increases,” he added.
Pump prices have been affected by a sharp rise in crude oil prices.
Crude has jumped from around $30 (€26) a barrel before Christmas to $80 at the moment.
This reflects the strengthening world economy, experts said.
“Oil prices are up, the dollar is up, usage is up, so prices are up,” Mr Faughnan said.
A litre of petrol now costs 141c on average – a rise of more than three cents when compared with last month’s figure of 137.6c. The cost of a litre of diesel has also increased over the past month, from 127.1c in April to 131c.
It now costs the driver of a petrol car around €9 more a month to fill up than this time last year, with diesel buyers facing an extra €11 a month to keep fuelled up.
It is €18 a month more expensive for petrol-vehicle drivers than two years ago, and €27 dearer for drivers of diesel-powered vehicles.
Mr Faughnan said 90c of the cost of a litre of motor fuel was made up of Government taxes.
He said petrol retailers made just 4c on each litre they sold, with the rest going in taxes.