Cheapest area of Northern Ireland for petrol and diesel revealed as price rises continue for 12th consecutive week

The latest update from the Northern Ireland Consumer Council, published on Thursday, shows that a litre of diesel now costs 197.5p on average, with petrol on 189.9p.

Both prices are up on last week’s figures, when the average cost of a litre of diesel was 196p and a litre of petrol was 189.3p.

Average Northern Ireland fuel prices have now increased every single week since the middle of April, when diesel was priced at 171.6p per litre and petrol at 159.5p.

And compared to this time of the year in 2021, the current average prices are now a massive 51% up for diesel and 48% for petrol.

On July 1 last year, a litre of diesel was priced on average at 130.1p and for a litre of petrol the price was 127.9p.

The latest figures, meanwhile, show a large degree of regional variation within Northern Ireland.

The cheapest fuel prices were found in Londonderry where, perhaps, competition with the different tax regime and lower prices across the border in Co Donegal could be acting as a brake on prices.

Strabane, which also sits just across the border from the Republic of Ireland, also had some of the lowest prices in Northern Ireland.

The lowest diesel price identified in the Consumer Council’s survey was 184.9p at a Londonderry filling station.

The highest price found by the survey, meanwhile, was recorded in several locations across Northern Ireland with a price of 199.9p per litre of diesel — down very slightly on the maximum prices identified last week that exceeded the £2 per litre mark.

There were filling stations in Banbridge, Dungannon, Newry, Ballymena, Ballyclare, Magherafelt, Lisburn, Antrim, Belfast and Enniskillen all found to be charging 199.9p per litre in the past week.

Londonderry also had the lowest price recorded for petrol in the Consumer Council’s survey, with 175.9p per litre identified in at least one filling station.

The highest petrol price found in the survey was in Ballyclare, meanwhile, where petrol was for sale at 194.9p.

The Consumer Council also publishes figures outlining the price of home heating oil.

The average cost of 300 litres of kerosene in Northern Ireland, according to the figures published on Thursday, was £325.98,

For 500 litres the average price was £523.09 and for 900 litres the price was £926.17.

Unlike forecourt prices for vehicle fuel, home heating oil costs have dropped slightly since the last update was published a week ago.

On the June 23 update, the Consumer Council listed the average price of 300 litres of home heating oil as £328.97, with 500 litres setting the average customer back £524.44, and a larger fill of 900 litres going for an average of £931.84.