Diesel price gap ‘anomaly’
Kalgoorlie-Boulder motorists are paying 10 cents per litre more for diesel fuel on average than their counterparts in Coolgardie, despite being separated by less than 40km.
According to statistics provided by FuelWatch, the average difference between Kalgoorlie-Boulder and Coolgardie was 9.7 cents per litre during December.
The highest price differential over the past week was on Christmas Day, when Puma Energy Coolgardie and Caltex Starshop Kalgoorlie were separated by 14 cents per litre.
It is part of a three month trend which has seen diesel prices between Kalgoorlie-Boulder and Coolgardie move away from parity, which has been the case for most of 2014.
Consumer Protection acting commissioner Gary Newcombe said significant price differences between regional towns was not uncommon.
He said greater competition between the two outlets in Coolgardie could be a driving factor behind lower prices.
“Prices do vary quite a bit across the regions,” he said.
“The biggest driver for that is competitiveness in that particular market, which doesn’t always mean the number of stations, it can mean one or other station operator might be more aggressive in their pricing.
“You can have a very competitive marketplace with just the two outlets compared to another place which has a number of outlets but the retailers themselves are not acting very competitively.”
Mr Newcombe said the price differential had only developed over the past three months and could close once falling fuel prices flow through to the region.
“The price advantage Coolgardie has got is a relatively recent thing, it is something that has just developed over the last couple of months,” he said.
“It’s possible you’ll see the Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie prices come more into alignment over the longer term.”
Department of Consumer Protection senior regional officer Kalgoorlie Ivo da Silva said he had passed the price information to FuelWatch and would be asking for outstanding reasons behind the price “anomaly”.
Mr da Silva said ultimately Kalgoorlie-Boulder motorists should vote with their wallets on fuel prices.
