The price of a litre of unleaded petrol looks set to breach the €1.30 barrier in the coming days. One leading retailer is to add 10 cent on to wholesale prices from midnight on Friday, RTE has learned.
The Gulf of Mexico, which took the brunt of the Hurricane Katrina, refines over 40% of US fuel supplies.
The devastation has significantly reduced the US's ability to produce petrol, and some refineries will stay shut for months. The hurricane has closed facilities which handle two million barrels of oil per day. As a result the wholesale price of fuel has shot up on markets in recent days.
European countries are preparing to release emergency stockpiles of petrol to dampen prices.
The July survey by AA Ireland said unleaded was an average of 108.5 cent and diesel was 107 cent. But costs have been climbing due to a global supply headache and prices will rise significantly in the coming days for Irish motorists.
Some retailers will push unleaded above €1.30 per litre and diesel will reach €1.17.
