Canberra motorists should take advantage of petrol prices at or below $1.40 a litre with prices increasing after a drone strike shut down more than half of Saudi Arabian oil production last week, according to the National Roads and Motorists' Association.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Prices reported by consumers on tracking website MotorMouth show the average Canberra fuel price increasing by 4.5 cents since the attack.
The association's spokesman, Peter Khoury, said petrol prices may not increase as dramatically as previously thought but they would likely remain high in the ACT because of a lack of competition.
Leading up the attack, oil prices had been rising equivalent to a three cent a litre petrol price increase, Mr Khoury said.
"We saw a dramatic increase in world oil prices immediately after the attack: over $10 a barrel, well over 10 per cent increases," he said.
"And looking at those original increases, that would have been equivalent to another 6 cents a litre increase here in Australia."
Concerns the oil price would continue to rise have eased and consumers can now be hopeful the full effect of oil price rises will not be passed on at the bowser, he said.
The average price on Saturday for unleaded petrol in Canberra was $1.45 a litre, with prices ranging from about $1.30 to $1.50.
Mr Khoury said Canberra's lack of price cycle - due to a lack of competition in the city - meant motorists would likely avoid the peak of $1.66 a litre expected in Sydney next week.
"[Canberra does] get kind of shielded from those dramatic increases, but, by the same token, it's also pretty consistent in terms of the pricing being so high," he said.
"Unfortunately Canberra is consistently quite high and you don't see the movements you get in other cities. So the movements in prices aren't as dramatic which means they don't go up as quickly but obviously they don't fall as quickly."
Saudi Arabian Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz said drone attacks last Saturday had halved the country's oil production, equivalent to 5.7 million barrels of oil a day lost.
About half of that lost capacity has been restored, partly through oil reserves.
The attacks have led to increased tensions between the United States and Iran, but US President Donald Trump has signalled holding off on military retaliation.
But a moderate number of American soldiers will help bolster Saudi Arabia's air and missile defences.
Delivery of military equipment to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates will also be expedited, the Pentagon announced on Friday.
Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, earlier ruled out talks with the United States after Mr Trump blamed Iran for the attacks.
Speaking in the Oval Office during a meeting with Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Mr Trump said restraint "shows far more strength".
The NRMA welcomed the recommendation, calling it a "much-needed wake-up call" the petrol industry needed in the ACT.
The committee's report noted fuel prices were mostly dependent on external factors, including the price of crude oil and currency exchange rates.
The final report was "deliberately cautious" and rejected proposals flagged in its May interim report which included fuel subsidies for low-income earners.
with AAP
Jasper Lindell
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
