 Print this page |
Petrol prices set to reach £1.12 per litre
|
| Petrol pump (c) PA |
Petrol prices are expected to hit our pocket even harder next month, adding to the cost of owning and driving a vehicle. Even if you can’t save at the pump, see if you can save when you’re behind the wheel
Energy bills aren’t the only type of fuel suffering from soaring prices, with petrol prices expected to reach £1.12 per litre or more next month as service stations feel the effects of the latest surge in global crude prices.
This would send the cost of filling a 50-litre petrol tank to £54.44 – 16.8% more than it cost a year ago.
The average price for a litre of petrol was 108.89p on Wednesday 23 April, but Andrew Horstead, of energy consultancy Utilyx, told The Guardian that he expects prices to rise by about 3% to an average £1.12 per litre during May.
The increase will take a while to hit motorists because there is a six-week time lag between global crude prices, which touched historic highs of nearly $120 per barrel this week, and pump prices.
Diesel, which stood at £1.19p on Wednesday, could rise to £1.23p.
Get good cover
Strike sparks panic buying
Meanwhile, motorists are being urged not to panic buy at the petrol pumps after talks to avert a strike at Scotland’s only oil refinery broke down.
Up to 1,200 workers at the Grangemouth site will walk out for two days from Sunday in a row over pensions, and Ineos – the company running the plant – has warned of possible petrol shortages.
The Scottish Government said it was “very disappointed'” but added it had contingency measures in place.
The AA, Britain’s largest motoring organisation, says motorists shouldn’t panic unnecessarily.
“I think motorists in Scotland are going to be wondering what on earth is going to happen, but there is still no reason for people to panic,” says Paul Watters, the AA's head of public affairs.
“We have to put our trust in the petroleum industry to keep Scotland's pumps filled.
“What motorists don't need to do is to keep their tanks full. They should keep filling the normal amount.”
by Martin Pegan, 24 April 2008
