Business Reporter
AN INCREASE of 30 cents per litre for petrol and 40 cents for diesel will become effective at 00:01 on 2 February 2022. Ministry of Mines and Energy spokesperson Andreas Simon stated that international oil prices sharply increased during the first month of 2022 due to closely interconnected factors.
Simon explained that geopolitical tensions in major oil producing regions of the world such as the Arab gulf region and on the Russian-Ukrainian border may lead to global oil supply disruptions, stoking fears in the oil market and further pushing prices upwards. In addition to this, he noted that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has continued to keep oil supply at a low level.
Simon additionally stated that oil producers are still finding it hard to attract investments for their projects as more and more investment funds are getting diverted towards renewable energy needs.
“The impact of the aforementioned factors on the prices of oil is reflected in the cost per barrel figures as shown in the latest calculation by the ministry. The average price for unleaded petrol 95 over the course of January 2022 is USD95.142 per barrel, (compared to USD86.331) per barrel for December 2021). This is an increase of almost USD10 per barrel in a space of only four weeks, “ Simon explained.
Further to this, he stated that the strengthening of the Namibian dollar against the US dollar over the past month was outweighed by the increases in the cost per barrel as well as the costs of shipping petroleum products, which pushed upwards as per the calculations of the ministry.
The new fuel prices will become N$15.95 per litre for petrol and N$15.98 per litre for diesel at Walvis Bay. The prices across the rest of the country will also be adjusted accordingly.
