What fuel actually costs you, on the corridors you run. South African wholesale diesel is R31.95 a litre as at 7 October 2026 — up 65.2% in a year, while petrol rose 39.9%. Every figure on this hub carries its source and its date, and every cost is worked against road distances we measured ourselves.
The number most operators are getting wrong
Diesel rose 65.2% in the year to October 2026. Petrol rose 39.9%.
If your costing tracks the petrol headline in the news, it has understated your fuel bill by more than a third.
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Start here
Four pieces, in the order they are useful.
The South African diesel price and its 14-month trend
The full series with sources, what drove it, and what the October increase costs on Johannesburg–Durban, Johannesburg–Cape Town and the Beitbridge run.
What is actually in the diesel price
R7.06 of a R31.95 litre is levy. The general fuel levy, the RAF levy and the slate — and the three-month levy holiday that ended on 1 July and that most operators never noticed.
The fuel surcharge formula, with a worked example
The clause that stops a fuel increase eating a rate you already agreed. Formula, worked example and contract wording.
Empty running is the real fuel cost
An empty return leg doubles fuel per paid kilometre, from R12.78 to R25.56 — the same on a 571 km lane and a 1 397 km one. Bigger than any rebate or fuel card.
Fuel by country
Each country answers the same questions: who sets the price, what it is today, what it has done over time, what drove it, what it costs on our corridors through that country, and where across the border it is cheaper.
| Country | Regulator | Current diesel | In USD | Effective | Cycle |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Botswana | Botswana Energy Regulatory Authority (BERA) | P20.93 / l regulated pump | US$1.48 | 7 Jul 2026 | no fixed cycle — by statutory instrument when under-recoveries build |
| Tanzania | Energy and Water Utilities Regulatory Authority (EWURA) | TSh 4 086 / l retail cap, Dar es Salaam | US$1.55 | 7 Oct 2026 | monthly — effective the first Wednesday |
| Zambia | Energy Regulation Board (ERB) | K33.27 / l uniform national pump | US$1.67 | 1 Oct 2026 | monthly — announced end of month, effective the 1st |
| Namibia | Ministry of Industries, Mines and Energy (MIME) | N$27.86 / l regulated pump, Walvis Bay | US$1.68 | 2 Sep 2026, held 7 Oct | monthly — effective the first Wednesday |
| Mozambique | Autoridade Reguladora de Energia (ARENE) | 116.25 MT / l regulated pump, ports | US$1.82 | 7 May 2026 | no fixed cycle — Council of Ministers approves major adjustments |
| South Africa | Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR) | R31.95 / l wholesale list, inland | US$1.93 | 7 Oct 2026 | monthly — announced end of month, effective first Wednesday |
| Zimbabwe | Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA) | US$2.04 / l pump ceiling | US$2.04 | 9 Oct 2026 | at least monthly — twice in June, July and September 2026 |
Sources. Each country page lists its sources in full: Botswana, Tanzania, Zambia, Namibia, Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe. The South African figures on this hub are from the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources statement of 5 October 2026 and the Fuels Industry Association of South Africa price table; the diesel rebate answer is from the SARS Diesel Refund Scheme page; US dollar figures use the exchangerate-api.com reading of 11 October 2026.
A note on comparing these. They are not the same kind of number. South Africa publishes a wholesale price — diesel has no fixed retail price there, so the pump is above it. Zimbabwe and Tanzania publish a maximum, which a station may sell below. Zambia, Namibia, Mozambique and Botswana publish a regulated pump price, and Zambia’s is the only one that is the same everywhere in the country. Botswana announces its price by press release rather than on a standing table, so its row carries the date of the last announced change. Anyone putting these side by side without saying which is which is comparing the wrong things.
The data behind this hub
Fuel prices are public. What is not public is what a fuel move costs on a specific lane, because that needs a real road distance rather than a straight line or a desk estimate.
| What we hold | Figure |
|---|---|
| Active corridors in the network | 269 |
| Corridors with a distance measured on the road network | 225 |
| Corridors crossing at Beitbridge | 29 |
| Corridors crossing at Chirundu | 19 |
| Locations in South Africa / Zimbabwe | 67 / 18 |
So when this hub says the October increase adds R1 587 to a Johannesburg–Cape Town run, that is 1 397 measured road kilometres, not a guess.
Questions people ask
What is the diesel price in South Africa right now?
R31.95 a litre for 0.05% sulphur diesel, wholesale, inland, effective 7 October 2026. Coastal is R31.08. Diesel has no fixed retail price, so the pump is above the wholesale figure.
Who sets fuel prices in South Africa?
The Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR) — formerly the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy. Prices are announced at the end of the month and take effect on the first Wednesday of the next.
How much has diesel gone up in the last year?
Inland wholesale diesel went from R19.34 in October 2025 to R31.95 in October 2026, a rise of R12.61 a litre or 65.2%. Petrol rose 39.9% over the same period.
How do I work out what a fuel increase costs me per kilometre?
Divide the diesel price by your kilometres per litre. At R31.95: 2.0 km/l is R15.98 a kilometre, 2.5 km/l is R12.78, 3.0 km/l is R10.65. Then multiply by the road distance of the lane.
Can a road transport operator claim the diesel rebate?
No. SARS lists farming, mining, forestry, specified vessels, rail locomotives and large generation plants. Road haulage of goods is not a qualifying activity.
Is diesel cheaper in Zimbabwe or South Africa?
South Africa, but by less than it used to be. Zimbabwe’s pump ceiling is around 6% above South Africa’s wholesale price, and South African retail sits above wholesale, so the real gap at the pump is narrower still.
Everything in this hub
-
Mozambique Diesel Price 2026: 116.25 MT and Six Regional Prices
Mozambican diesel rose 45.5% in a single step on 7 May 2026 to 116.25 MT a litre at the ports – and costs more the further…
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Botswana Diesel Price 2026: the P8.77 Jump and the Levy Suspension
BERA raised diesel by P8.77 a litre in March 2026 and cut it by P4.12 on 7 July, to P20.93. What that means for a Trans-Kalahari…
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Tanzania Diesel Price October 2026: EWURA Cap TSh 4,086 and the 14-Month Trend
EWURA caps diesel at TSh 4,086 in Dar es Salaam from 7 October 2026, up TSh 209. A 14-month series from the regulator’s own notices, and…
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Namibia Diesel Price October 2026: N$27.86 at Walvis Bay
Diesel 50ppm stays at N$27.86 at Walvis Bay from 7 October 2026 while petrol rises N$1.50. Because the Namibia dollar is pegged to the rand that…
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Zambia Diesel Price October 2026: K33.27 and the 14-Month ERB Trend
The ERB raised Zambian diesel K6.41 to K33.27 a litre from 1 October 2026 as six months of fuel tax relief ended. Fourteen months of sourced…
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Empty Running Is the Real Fuel Cost: R12.78 a Kilometre Becomes R25.56
An empty return leg exactly doubles fuel cost per paid kilometre – the same on a 571 km lane and a 1 397 km one. Worked…
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The Diesel Rebate and Road Freight: Who Actually Qualifies
Road haulage is not a qualifying activity for the SARS diesel refund. Here is the full list of what is, and what a transport operator can…
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What Is Actually in the South African Diesel Price (October 2026)
About R7.06 of every R31.95 litre is levy. The general fuel levy, the RAF levy, the slate – and the three-month levy holiday that ended on…
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Zimbabwe Diesel Price 2026: the ZERA Ceiling, the Trend and the Beitbridge Fill Decision
ZERA’s diesel ceiling is US$2.04 a litre as of 9 October 2026. Why a dollar-denominated pump price behaves differently to a rand one, and whether it…
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South Africa Diesel Price, October 2026: the 14-Month Trend and What It Costs Per Kilometre
Wholesale diesel is R31.95 a litre from 7 October 2026, up 65.2% in a year while petrol rose 39.9%. The full sourced series, what drove it,…
How to use this hub
Every number here carries its source and its date. Where a figure is not publicly verifiable we say so in the piece rather than estimate it — a fuel series you cannot check is worth nothing to you. As each country regulator publishes its next review, the tables above are updated in place and the date on them moves with it. This hub sits inside Kweli News, where the fuel, cost and corridor pieces are collected as they publish.
Kweli Load Exchange
Now find a load for your truck — or a truck for your load
Free for transporters and shippers. No commission, no subscription.
Local
and cross-border
See
who you are dealing with
R0
commission, always
List your truck and its corridors, or post a load. Your corridors decide which loads we show you first — they do not lock you out of the rest. Body, weight, fit, papers: we show them, and you decide.
WhatsApp-integrated · your number is your account. Nothing from an app store — you finish with your trucks and their corridors on the board.
New to Kweli? See what the network does → — load exchange, driver registry and the Pulse community.