UAE increases fuel prices in March: Residents to pay up to 20% more

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For Mohammed AbuNael, a resident of Sharjah working as a marketing executive in Dubai, the surge in fuel prices may hinder his monthly budget. In February, he spent Dh800 on fuel, and he believes that his fuel spending is set to increase by nearly 20 per cent in March. With plans for increased travel this month, AbuNael anticipates his fuel expenses to exceed Dh1,000.

“As Ramadan is approaching, I have many meetings lined up in in different cities across UAE and my physical presence is required,” said AbuNael, working at Jasani group, a promotional giveaways company.

The UAE has announced the petrol prices for the month of March. Super 98 petrol will cost Dh3.03 a litre, compared to Dh2.88 in February, special 95 petrol will cost Dh2.92 per litre, compared to Dh2.76 last month and for E-Plus 91 petrol will cost Dh2.85 a litre, compared to Dh2.69 a litre in February.

Residents told Khaleej Times that these changes would impact their wallets and that they may have to manage their expenses carefully.

AbuNael typically uses Super 98 petrol will have to pay Dh3.03 which he was paying Dh2.88 last month. Take, for instance, the expense of filling up his car's tank was Dh160, but with the new rates, it will now amount to Dh181. This surge of over Dh20 per tank may seem incremental, but when multiplied by the frequency of refills, it adds up significantly.

“I refill my tank around seven times a month, this implies an extra expenditure of Dh140 in March alone,” said Abu Nael.

For Bilal Mohammed, a regular commuter from Dubai to Ajman, typically spent Dh500 on fuel each month, Bilal now faces an extra cost of nearly Dh60 due to the increased rates.

“My monthly refuelling expense will escalate to over Dh500. I refuel for Dh125 each time and now I may have to pay a little extra. My travel may increase this month which I will have additional expenditure,” said Bilal, who works at a hospital in Ajman.

Some residents refuelled on Thursday night to save some extra bucks on their fuel expenses.

A resident of Deira saved over Dh100 refuelling 3 cars. “We have three cars at home - a Land Cruiser, another SUV and a Chevrolet sedan. In total we saved about Dh70 refuelling last night,” said Abdul Majeed, a businessman.

Ulan Mendoz, a resident of Deira working in JLT, said that he spends nearly Dh400 every month on fuel and for the next month he must keep extra budget for the petrol. “I waited for a few minutes to refuel. It was peak hour and most of them left their offices and drove straight to the stations,” said Mendoz.

“I saved Dh21 it before 12am. I was paying Dh160 in February and for this month, I will have to pay a little over Dh180,” said Mendoz.