Forecourt operator Applegreen is dropping fuel prices at every service station across the Republic by up to 10 cent per litre from Friday.
According to a company spokeswoman: “the aggregate average price drop is 8 cent per litre, with a significant number of retail sites offering a 10 cent drop”. She said it will mean the average price Applegreen forecourts is now 132.2 cent per litre of petrol and 122.1 cent per litre of diesel.
Applegreen Ireland managing director, Dáire Nolan, said in a statement that “the recent fall in the crude oil price has now come through the supply chain and we are delighted to be able to drop our prices”.
The move follows a 30 per cent crash in oil prices at the start of the week when Saudi Arabia said it would boost oil supplies to a record level next month in a sharp escalation of its price war after the collapse of an Opec production deal with Russia.
Despite a 3 per cent rise on Friday, oil prices were set for their worst weekly drubbing since the 2008 financial crisis as investors fretted over evaporating demand from the coronavirus pandemic and a production ramp-up by top producers.
Brent crude was up $1.12, or 3.4 per cent, at $34.33 a barrel by 7.28am after falling more than 7 per cent on Thursday. For the week, Brent is set to fall around 24 per cent, the biggest weekly decline since December 2008, when it fell nearly 26 per cent.
Applegreen said it was passing savings directly on to customers in response to the lowering of crude oil prices.
Applegreen Ireland managing director Dáire Nolan said the company was aware of the “unprecedented times” Ireland is facing as it grapples with the spread of the coronavirus.
“Since January 1st our prices have already fallen by 5 cent, however the recent fall in the crude oil price has now come through the supply chain and we are delighted to be able to drop our prices by up to a further 10 cent,” he said.
“We are acutely aware of the heightened and unprecedented times all of us here in Ireland find ourselves in at the moment and we want to support our communities by leading a price drop across the entire country.”
Ireland’s other big forecourt operator, Circle K, said it would also be cutting prices in the coming weeks, but it was not specific about the nature or extent of the cuts.
“Customers will see a significant decrease in prices at the pump in the coming days and that is a natural consequence of wider external and global factors including recent decreases in the price of oil,” said Gordon Lawlor, managing director of Circle K Ireland.
“Overall, we want to reassure customers that there is sufficient fuel supply available for the weeks ahead and there is no need to overstock on fuel. Our supply chain for food and convenience items is also operating without any disruption.”
