Cutting government taxes and levies was the only way to ease an anticipated R2-plus per litre petrol price hike without endangering industry sustainability, MPs were told by various petroleum refining, retailing and wholesalers associations on Friday.
The words may have been different, but without fail the message was the same: knee-jerk responses amid a public outcry of rising petrol prices would undermine the sustainability of the domestic industry given the slim margins across the board.
DA MP Kevin Mileham’s comment on the associations’ “incredible self-interest” was supported by other MPs in a rare cross-party political agreement.
Friday’s meeting of the parliamentary mineral resources and energy committee came as the government announced an overall review of the petrol price – with more pressing mitigation of rising petrol prices under way.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February has triggered rapidly rising global oil prices that have upped the pressure in South Africa where the petrol price, after a series of increases, breached R20 per litre.
In an unusual move, the 2022 Budget did not raise the fuel levies and the Road Accident Fund (RAF) tax – the carbon tax component of the…