Consumers are expected to pay less for petrol, diesel and liquefied petroleum gas from Wednesday, July 1, as the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers projects a reduction in fuel prices driven by lower global crude oil prices and the continued strengthening of the cedi.

The Chamber of Petroleum Consumers said the expected reductions follow a 19.69% fall in global crude oil prices from $97.32 per barrel to $78.16 per barrel, coupled with a 3.14% appreciation of the cedi against the US dollar during the current pricing window.

According to the chamber, the international Free on Board price of petrol fell by 6.92%, leading to a projected average retail price of GH¢13.36 per litre. This represents a 6.21% reduction from the current average price of GH¢14.24 per litre.

COPEC said petrol is expected to sell between GH¢12.69 and GH¢14.03 per litre during the first pricing window of July, depending on the pricing decisions of individual oil marketing companies.

Diesel is expected to record a bigger reduction after its international Free on Board price dropped by 15.18%. COPEC projects an average pump price of GH¢14.10 per litre, down 13.28% from the current average of GH¢16.26 per litre.

The chamber estimates diesel prices will range between GH¢13.39 and GH¢14.80 per litre.

Liquefied petroleum gas is also expected to become cheaper after its international Free on Board price declined by 15.96%. COPEC estimates LPG will retail between GH¢9.54 and GH¢10.55 per kilogram during the pricing window.

The chamber urged oil marketing companies to pass on the benefits of the favourable market conditions to consumers without delay, saying the expected reductions would provide much needed relief for households and businesses.

It also welcomed the government’s decision to allocate part of its share of crude oil from the Jubilee Field to support local refineries, saying the policy could reduce imports of refined petroleum products, ease pressure on the cedi and improve long term price stability in the downstream petroleum sector.

The projection comes after the National Petroleum Authority revised its price floors for the first pricing window of July. The authority set the minimum prices at GH¢12.79 per litre for petrol, GH¢13.54 per litre for diesel and GH¢10.11 per kilogram for liquefied petroleum gas.