New Zealand Trucking has reliably learnt that the price of diesel should rise between 30c and 40c per litre tonight (Friday 11 March).

This following a widespread press release put out today by fuel retailer Waitomo Group, in which motorists were encouraged to fill their tanks ahead of unprecedented price hikes tonight.

Speaking with Canterbury-based log truck operator Mark Amer reveals that truck operators are expecting large increases in the costs of running their vehicles.

Amer, who had just filled up his Mack Trident with 600l of diesel, calculated that with a price jump of 40c per litre, the same 600l will cost him an additional $240.

Amer says he consumes 400l of diesel a day. Assuming a 6-day work week for 50 weeks per year, this means an operator consuming similar amounts of diesel can expect their costs to rise by $48,000 per year from this increase alone.

“The stupid part is the cost of crude went down around $20 last night, so where is this price hike coming from?” he asks.

Since 25 February the price of crude oil has steadily risen from approximately US$91.50, to a high of approximately US$123.60 on Tuesday 8 March. Currently the price is approximately US$106.20.

1News reports that motorists have been flocking to fuel stations causing queues of dozens of cars, and many facilities are running dry of certain grades of petrol.

Unfortunately, we have been unable to get comment from industry organisations on the topic and there’s currently little other information forthcoming from fuel suppliers or governmental departments.