Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (Mera) has reduced fuel pump prices barely one month after effecting another downward revision.
In a statement issued last night, Mera said petrol will now sell at K690.50 per litre from K780/litre while diesel is at K664.80 per litre from K765/litre and paraffin K441/litre from K625/litre.
Mera board chairperson Bishop Joseph Bvumbwe and chief executive officer Collins Magalasi said in the statement that the downward revision in the fuel pump prices was influenced by the impact of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic which has affected the prices of fuel globally.
Reads the statement in part: “The preventive measures that are in place to curb the spread of the disease have resulted in a significant drop of local demand for petroleum products with oil marketing companies and retailers selling a fraction of their normal sales.”
Reacting to the news y e s t e r d a y e v ening , Consumers Association of Malawi (Cama) executive director John Kapito said it is a positive development as it reflects what is happening globally.
He said: “We expect these gains to be passed on to consumers.”
Vice-President Saulos Chilima last month proposed a reduction in water tariffs among low-income earners and argued that the ideal pump price was K623 per litre for petrol and K704/litre for diesel in line with developments on the international market. But Magalasi, in an interview with The Nation last month, dismissed “Chilima’s price mathematics”, saying it was wrong to equate the international pricing to the local pump price.
