The Mozambican government on Wednesday announced increases in the price of petrol and diesel, taking effect as from Thursday.

The price of petrol rises by 4.4 per cent, from 66.59 to 69.53 meticais a kilo (from 1.13 to 1.18 US dollars, at current exchange rates). A litre of diesel will now cost 64.66 meticais, an increase of 2.8 per cent on the current price of 62.92 meticais.

The price of LPG cooking gas (butane) rises by 1.3 per cent, from 60.33 to 61.13 meticais a kilo.

There is no change in the price of kerosene, which remains 50.33 meticais a litre. Likewise, the price of the compressed natural gas used to power vehicles remains unchanged at 31.97 meticais per litre equivalent.

Announcing the new prices at a Maputo press conference, the National Director of Fuels and Hydrocarbons, Moises Paulino, said the increases were necessary to ensure that Mozambique will not run out of fuel, “since we know that 100 per cent of these petroleum products are imported”. The government was making every effort to ensure continuity in fuel supplies.

The general director of the fuel importing agency, IMOPETRO, Joao Macanja, had a more optimistic message – with the current stability of international oil prices, he believed there could be room to reduce the prices of liquid fuels on the Mozambican market in the near future.

Price changes in Mozambique lag behind international prices, since the government takes into account the average prices of the previous two months. Macanja said the changes announced on Wednesday were based on the average international prices of May and June.

In May the price of a barrel of oil had reached 80 dollars, he said, but subsequently the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Counties (OPEC) had agreed to increase production. The rise in supply had pushed the price down to around 70 dollars a barrel. This could allow the Mozambican government to reduce prices at the next monthly price review.

Source: AIM/ COM