Petrol prices in Australia could rise above $2 per litre, as the conflict between Ukraine and Russia intensifies.
Data from the Australian Institute of Petroleum (AIP) shows the national average for unleaded petrol has reached 183.9c per litre, with metropolitan regions in Hobart and Melbourne the worst hit with an average 196.9 and 191.3c per litre respectively.
Peter Khoury, NRMA spokesperson, said that due to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) refusal to increase oil production levels and the war in Ukraine, customers could continue to see new record prices set, with the average price of petrol to soon be over $2 per litre across most capital cities.
“While the per-barrel oil prices are comparable to July 2014, with a lower Australian dollar, this is the highest Australians have ever paid for fuel,” Khoury told yahoo!.
“Many Australians will remember when averages dropped to $1 per litre in April 2020 and driving around their local area to find service stations selling below the average. If prices continue to surge, motorists could be faced with struggling to find prices under $2.”
Recently, Australia and 31 other members of the International Energy Agency collectively agreed to release 60 million barrels of oil from their emergency reserves in hopes of assuring the global market there would be no shortfall in supplies.
The US has so far not banned the import of Russian oil, but Nancy Pelosi, US House of Representatives Speaker, said that the chamber is considering introducing a ban on Russian oil and gas imports.