Motorists' engagement with the issue of petrol pricing in the ACT is starting to make waves with Majura Park Costco dropping pump prices to 106.7 cents per litre on Saturday and Woolworths Caltex following suit for shopping voucher holders.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury said two powerful ingredients were at play in Canberra, exerting downward pressure on average petrol prices.
"The prices in Canberra have always been higher than Sydney but the gap was huge," he said.
"Two things, grassroots pressure and competition, they are the things are going to ensure we are paying a fairer price for petrol."
More than 29,000 people have engaged with the ACT Fuel Watch Facebook page which has attracted close to 11,300 likes since it was created on January 4.
One of the page administrators, Ben, said newcomer Costco jolted the local market into an initial drop, but had since driven down pump prices further.
"We are not in support of one particular brand or another but Costco are really pushing the envelope now," he said.
"It's not only Costco members that are really sparking a change and general Canberra consumers are benefiting from it."
He said there was a persisting disparity with north side fuel retailers continuing to be the most expensive, but consumers could apply plenty of pressure on stubborn retailers by acting with their feet.
"It's been almost like a wave out from Majura Park," Ben said. "On Saturday last week there were two petrol stations in the ACT trading at under $1.27 and this weekend there are 17."
Mr Khoury said while the rise in consumer engagement through the ACT Fuel Watch Facebook page in the past weeks was unarguable, it was important not to overlook the current global drop in fuel pricing.
"There has been a global phenomenon of oversupply for several weeks so we have to careful about what is driving this drop in Canberra, but also nationally," he said.
"We still think there is a long way to go before prices in Canberra are as competitive as they could be. Costco is great, it's a start but what we'd like to see is more independent retailers in the market because they are the players that are consistently putting downward pressure on prices."
