Average diesel price tops petrol, expert says 91 could cost $3.70 per litre by the end of the week
Monday, 30 March 2026
MBIE’s just-released bi-weekly update on current fuel stocks and shipments shows an improvement
An expert says NZ should prioritise who gets diesel as farmers need it more than commuters
Diesel is costing more than 91 octane petrol in some places including Christchurch.
An expert says the government needs a stronger grip on who gets access to diesel, as the average cost of the fuel inches higher than that of 91 octane petrol.
Westpac chief economist Kelly Eckhold told RNZ the government should prioritise diesel allocation now as the Middle East conflict deteriorated.
Yemen's Houthis had entered the war and Iran had accused the US of plotting a ground invasion - which would guarantee the conflict to continue longer than another two to four weeks.
Diesel is now, on average, more expensive than 91 octane petrol at the pump, according to price comparison site Gaspy. On Monday morning it was quoting the average price of diesel at a fraction of a cent over $3.43 a litre, and 91 a fraction-of-a-cent under.
At the Z service station at Carlton Corner in Christchurch, diesel cost 5 cents a litre more than 91 on Monday, at $3.499 a litre. Owners of all diesel-powered vehicles must also pay road user charges.
Eckhold expected 91 to cost an average of $3.70 per litre by the end of the week.
'New Zealand is at the long end, at the end of a very long supply chain, and basically mid-April is looking like when it lines up for when there will be challenges here.'
'Diesel that we burn now could be diesel that we need in three or four weeks.
'You can get on the bus, you can drive your EV to work, but in the end, if we want a farmer to be getting our food off the land, then he needs that diesel.”
The Press reported recently that a diesel price spike matters more than petrol because it keeps much of the productive economy moving. When it rises faster, the pressure lands first on freight, farming and working vehicles, then spreads more widely through supply chains and consumer prices.
During Monday morning’s media rounds, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said people should “keep working, keep the kids in school” and do not need to hoard fuel.
“There'll be some sort of disruption to fuel at some point in time. At this point, it's business as usual… Please don't think 'it's Covid 2.0, I'm making sourdough at home again',” he told RNZ on Monday morning.
The latest gauge of the country's fuel supplies shows some improvement.
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) figures, released just after lunchtime Monday, showed that, to 11.59pm on Wednesday March 25, New Zealand had 25 days of jet fuel (with 25 days’ worth on the way on ships); 22 days of diesel (with 33 days’ worth on the way) and 28 days of petrol (with 31 days on the way).
Some of the shipments were due within two days, the rest within three weeks.
RNZ reported supply chain data from US investment bank JP Morgan reports the last shipments of fuel from Gulf Oil are likely to arrive in New Zealand on April 20.
Lyttelton Port Company’s shipping schedule shows one petroleum-carrying vessel, which the port said carries all three types of fuel, is due direct from the sea on Friday. Two further petroleum carriers due on April 12 and 13 stop in New Plymouth and Tauranga ports first. A Lyttelton Port spokesperson said the discharge was at the oil companies’ discretion.
Fern Energy chief executive Chris Gourley told Morning Report people were trying to beat the price by filling up early, and in some cases by hoarding, which was creating demand spikes in certain regions that could not be met.
On Friday, Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones unveiled a four-phase fuel plan for New Zealand to respond to fuel supply uncertainty driven by the conflict in the Middle East. The country is currently in phase 1, meaning there are no restrictions.
Luxon told RNZ that South Korea - our number one source of refined fuel - had given an assurance that New Zealand would get 100% of what it ordered last year.
He told Breakfast a planned 12 cents-per-litre fuel tax increase planned for January was looking less realistic. He ruled out cutting GST on fuel and would not commit to free or subsidised public transport.
Across the ditch, the Australian states of Victoria and Tasmania have temporarily made public transport free as motorists face price pain at the petrol pump.
Diesel the ‘backbone of the economy’
Federated Farmers spokesman David Birkett told RNZ farmers would be keeping an eye on diesel stocks, as up to 95% of farming machinery used the fuel.
“It really is the backbone of the New Zealand economy these days,” he told RNZ.
Birkett said it was prudent for farmers to save what diesel they could early.
“Saving a few litres here and there now might [put] us in a better position than a month’s time or even two months’ time when things potentially could be better, or they could be tighter,” Birkett told RNZ.