There will be no major change to petrol and diesel prices on New Year's Day but motorists could face a double price increase early in 2023.
Fuel prices topped €2 in many place in Ireland in 2022 as drivers struggled to keep their cars on the road. The government stepped in to cut excise and VAT on fuel and prices have now dropped by around 10.5%.
While the government didn't take measures in the Budget last September to increase fuel costs, their concessions to keep prices low are likely to be reversed before the summer.
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Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan has indicated that excise and VAT reductions at the pumps are likely to be reversed as early as March, meaning a noticeable increase in prices for drivers.
A new AA Ireland report published earlier this month found that fuel prices dropped by 10.5% on average towards the end of 2022.
The average price of a litre of petrol is now below €1.60 per litre, a 17c drop since last month and the lowest average price for petrol since September 2021.
The average price for a litre of diesel is now €1.74. Diesel prices had been steadily increasing and are now also down significantly, with a drop of 22c per litre compared to November.
It is the lowest price recorded in Ireland for diesel since February 2022, when the war in Ukraine broke out.
However, Paddy Comyn, head of communication with AA Ireland, told the Irish Mirror recently that prices are likely to increase again.
“This is likely to be the bottom for the moment,” he explained.
“We are already seeing, and I was talking to petrol retailers, that diesel is going up a little bit again.
“The price for a barrel of oil was $75 a barrel. It is about $80 now. A lot of analysts are saying it will go up again to almost $100 a barrel after Christmas.
“That is speculation.
“It might be possible that after Christmas, things will go up again.
“That is speculation rather than concrete facts.
“It is safe to say it will go up, it is just a question of how much.
“Over the next few weeks, it will be a trickle, but it won’t be anything too dramatic.”
The Government announced in September that it was extending excise duty cuts on petrol and diesel until the end of February.
The Irish Mirror understands that there are currently no plans for these cuts to be extended.
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