CONSUMERS and businesses in the Nelson Mandela Bay and surrounding areas are being introduced to a new fuel pricing regime.
This change means that although fuel prices have decreased, this group of people will be paying more for fuel than they ordinarily would as a coastal region. A unilateral decision by the Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources to revise the transport tariffs for petrol, diesel, and paraffin to those applicable in inland zones means that Bay consumers will not receive the full benefit of the October fuel price reduction.
“Effectively, accountability for the additional costs incurred by fuel transporters and wholesalers of trucking fuel into the area after a berth at the Port of Port Elizabeth was damaged in June is being unfairly passed on to local consumers and businesses,” said President of the Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber, Siyolo Dick. “Every quarter of society is justifiably outraged.”
Dick assured the community that the Chamber, acting in the interests of its 700-member businesses, is tackling this injustice head-on. “We are urgently investigating the economic impact and the implications of the Minister’s decision and considering the various options available to us to oppose this harsh and unfair decision, and have it reversed,” he said. “We are consulting with our national partners to rally strategic support, and we will follow every possible avenue to fight on behalf of our members and the community of Nelson Mandela Bay.”
“This is not simply a matter of losing out on a few cents per litre of the reduced fuel price. The ripple effect is substantial – raising the costs of transport for workers, the costs of doing business and transporting goods, with inflationary impact especially on the prices of food and essential goods. The impact on the agricultural sector is particularly dire, as the tariff increases with distance from the port,” Dick explained.
“Even more serious than the cost implication, it is a blatantly unfair and unjust decision by the Minister, taken without consultation with the affected community, which penalises, and passes the buck to, local consumers and businesses for a problem not of their making,” he added.
Denise van Huyssteen, Chamber CEO, echoed these sentiments, “This results in the area being unfairly subjected to new pricing tariffs where consumers and businesses will pay more for their fuel than what they should normally have been subjected to as part of a coastal region,” she said.
“In practical terms, on the price of 95 unleaded fuel, consumers in the Bay received an 83 cents per litre reduction instead of 114 cents, while those in Kariega were penalised even more with a 50 cents reduction and the Kirkwood area with a 45 cents reduction. In terms of diesel, the Bay received a 73 cents reduction, Kariega 50 cents, and the Kirkwood area 45 cents reduction,” van Huyssteen detailed.
“On LPG gas, the Bay received a 250 cents increase, Kariega 162 cents, and Kirkwood a 149 cents increase,” she added.
“While we understand that this pricing structure is of a temporary nature, and that once the berth is fixed this area will return to its former allotted zone, this decision will still have a lasting effect and may potentially impact upon future fuel pricing adjustments,” van Huyssteen warned.
“We are currently reviewing the matter and once we have a full understanding of the implications, we will consider the various options to determine our next steps in opposing this harsh and unfair decision,” she concluded.
