It wasn’t long ago that Nelson and Tasman were among the most expensive places in the country to buy fuel, but now they often have the cheapest fuel.
Data from the petrol comparison app Gaspy show that Timaru was the only place that had cheaper 91 petrol in mid-February and its director, Mike Newton, says Nelson prices have been significantly cheaper since the beginning of November.
New Zealand Automobile Association principal policy advisor, Terry Collins, says “it’s the nature of competition” and follows the entry of the low-cost fuel company, Waitomo, into the Nelson market.
He says lower fuel prices will have a flow-on effect on the local economy, but warns prices fluctuate.
“Make hay while the sun shines. Just because you have the cheapest now, doesn’t mean you will be the cheapest in the future.”
Waitomo opened three unmanned fuel sites in Nelson late last year and its spokesperson, Greta Shirley, says the company has been searching for sites in the wider Tasman area but has nothing concrete to report yet.
She says the company aims to keep prices fair, but it also has to be a sustainable business so that it can keep expanding.
“Since launching in Nelson, we’ve shaken up fuel prices in a region that used to pay some of the highest in the country,” she says.
“Some say we’re ‘just like the others’, but here’s the deal: We’re here to keep prices fair, but we can’t keep racing to the bottom.”
