Zambia’s energy regulator has raised the price of petrol by three percent with effect from Wednesday on the back of rising international oil prices and a strengthening local currency.
Energy Regulation Board (ERB) chairperson Reynolds Bowa said late Tuesday that the pump price of petrol has been revised upwards by K0.80 (about US$0.05) per litre while those for diesel and kerosene remained unchanged.
The latest increase means that the price of petrol rose from K24.15 a litre to K24.95 per litre with effect from June 1.
The prices for diesel and kerosene remained at K24.64 and K18.76, respectively.
Bowa attributed the increase to a rise in the average international price of the three petroleum products, which rose from US$133 per barrel in April to US$139 a barrel in May.
“Specifically, petrol prices increased by 8.9 percent, while diesel and kerosene rose by 3.3 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively,” the official said in a statement.
He attributed the comparatively higher increase in the price of petrol “to the seasonal rise in demand for petrol in the Western countries as the summer holiday season commences.”
“Further the Kwacha appreciated by close to two percent against the United States dollar to an average of K17.00/US$ since the last price review in April 2022.”
He explained that the variances in computed prices for diesel and kerosene were within the set trigger band of 2.5 percent, hence the decision to leave pump prices of the two commodities unchanged.
On the other hand, the movement in petrol prices rose above the trigger band threshold, thereby necessitating an increase.
The computations were based on the movements in the two fundamental factors, namely the international oil prices and the Kwacha/US$ exchange rate, Bowa said.
JN/APA