Fuel prices set to rise as petrol is projected to hit GH¢16.21 a litre

Ghanaian motorists could pay more for fuel from Tuesday, 1 September, with petrol prices projected to rise by about 5% to GH¢16.21 per litre, according to the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers Ghana (COPEC).

Diesel and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) prices are also expected to increase during the new pricing window.

COPEC says the projected adjustments are being driven largely by changes in the international prices of refined petroleum products, despite a recent appreciation of the cedi against the US dollar.

Its analysis puts the projected mean price of petrol at GH¢16.21 per litre, up from the current average price of GH¢15.43.

Diesel is expected to rise from an average of GH¢17.17 to about GH¢17.61 per litre an estimated increase of 2.58%.

The price of LPG is also projected to increase marginally to about GH¢14.19 per kilogramme.

The projections come despite two developments that might ordinarily be expected to ease pressure on fuel prices.

Global crude oil prices, according to COPEC, fell marginally during the current pricing window, from $90.41 to $89.30 per barrel.

At the same time, the cedi strengthened against the US dollar. The average interbank exchange rate improved from GH¢11.800 to GH¢11.5166 per dollar, representing an appreciation of about 2.39%.

However, COPEC says movements in the Free-On-Board (FOB) prices of refined petroleum products are expected to outweigh the potential benefits of the stronger cedi and lower crude oil prices.

The changes could mean higher costs for motorists and households that rely on LPG, although the final prices will depend on the decisions of individual oil marketing companies.

Ghana operates a deregulated fuel pricing system, meaning petroleum prices can vary among fuel retailers and are influenced by international petroleum product prices and exchange-rate movements.

The expected increases are projections by COPEC and do not represent a uniform price set by all fuel retailers.