SA truckers fill up in Swaziland

MBABANE – SA motorists
and truck owners residing
or working anywhere near
Swaziland are crossing the
border to enjoy significantly
less expensive fuel prices.
Following last week’s fuel
price hikes in SA, diesel is
on average R1.50 cheaper
per litre in Swaziland,
while petrol is R2.50
cheaper per litre.
“There is a queue to
get through customs
at the border, but I
do it to fill my tank
here,” said Amos
Fraiser, a truck
driver who filled
the tank of his
rig at the Caltex
petrol station at
Oshoek border
post.
Oshoek is
Swaziland’s
principal border
gate serving
traffic to and from
Gauteng and parts
of Mpumalanga
province. Some
freight haulers from
Johannesburg who
make deliveries
in Swaziland
and who spoke
to FTW last
week said they
had been
instructed by
their home
offices in
Gauteng to
fill up in
Swaziland.
“With a
big (petrol)
tank, you can
save hundreds of rand. Fuel
prices in South Africa are
crazy. Government is trying
to tax us to death,” said
another trucker.
SA fuel hikes were
predicated by the drop of
the rand’s value against the
US dollar, according to SA
Reserve Bank Governor Gill
Marcus. The international
price of petrol products was
also a factor.
In Swaziland, fuel prices
are kept down relative to
SA by a government
subsidy. The road freight
industry is anticipating a
price hike, which can come
at any time. Meanwhile,
SA vehicle owners who
can detour to Swaziland
are taking advantage of
the current price difference.