Oil price spikes: What’s become more expensive in Singapore?

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SINGAPORE – Consumers in Singapore are bracing themselves for the worst as fuel prices soar amid the month-long US-Israeli war with Iran that is roiling global energy markets.

Asian countries have been hit hard by the Middle East war. They buy about 80 per cent of the oil shipped through the Strait of Hormuz – an artery for about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.

The Straits Times looks at how the energy crisis driven by the Iran war is affecting Singaporeans at home, on the road, in the air or at sea.

Electricity and gas

Electricity and gas provider SP Group on March 31 said electricity tariffs for homes will rise to 29.72 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) from April 1 to June 30, up 2.1 per cent from the previous quarter.

The average monthly electricity bill for those living in four-room HDB flats will go up by $1.96, after goods and services tax (GST).

Piped gas provider City Energy on the same day said gas tariffs will increase from 23.63 cents per kWH to 23.89 cents per kWh from April to June, after GST.

The Energy Market Authority (EMA) said the latest prices were only partly affected by the rise in fuel costs. About 95 per cent of Singapore’s electricity is produced from imported natural gas – the main raw material for the production of town gas, it added.

As fuel prices are expected to remain high in coming days, it is likely there will be further and possibly sharper increases in electricity and town gas tariffs in future, EMA said.

Consumers on electricity retail contracts are likely to also see price hikes when renewing their contracts, it added.

Fuel

In Singapore, petrol and diesel prices have been steadily climbing since the start of the Iran war, surging past highs set during the 2022 Russia-Ukraine war.

At 3pm on March 31, prices for 95-octane petrol ranged from $3.40 to $3.42 a litre at Caltex, Esso, Shell, Sinopec and SPC stations, according to the Consumers Association of Singapore’s Price Kaki tracking app.

Prices for 92-octane grade petrol were at $3.38 a litre at Caltex, Esso and SPC stations.

Price hikes for diesel have outpaced those for petrol. Checks on the Price Kaki app show that diesel prices were at $4.13 a litre at Caltex, Esso and Shell stations, $3.93 a litre at Sinopec and $3.92 a litre at SPC.

These are the latest pump rates, according to data from Price Kaki.

Private-hire vehicles and taxis

Private-hire firms and taxi operators have imposed surcharges to defray fuel expenses for drivers.

Grab, in an e-mail sent to users on March 31, said it will increase the current 50-cent fee to 90 cents for each trip that is not on a standard or metered taxi.

Grab’s taxi arm GrabCab as well as Strides Premier and Prime Taxi will also increase metered fares from March 30 to May 31.

In a March 23 statement, a GrabCab spokesperson said the increase would apply to all metered taxi rides, whether hailed on the street or booked through Grab’s app.

The unit fare will increase from 26 cents to 27 cents for every 45 seconds of waiting, every 400m travelled between 1km and 10km, and every 350m travelled beyond 10km.

Strides Premier and Prime Taxi will also charge passengers 27 cents – an increase of one cent – for every 45 seconds of waiting, every 400m travelled up to 10km, and every 350m beyond 10km.

For Prime’s premium category of vehicles, it will cost 39 cents, up one cent, for the same distance-time rates.

Singapore’s largest taxi operator, ComfortDelGro (CDG), on March 17 said it would temporarily raise its metered fares and introduce a fee for app bookings to help drivers manage higher operating costs.

Between March 24 and May 31, customers will see a one-cent increase in metered fares for distances and waiting times. A driver fee set at 50 cents for fares below $15 and 80 cents for fares of $15 and above was introduced for bookings on the CDG Zig app.

Air travel

Jet fuel prices have surged to record highs since the war broke out on Feb 28 with US-Israeli strikes on Iran.

Some airlines have hiked fares due to the Middle East crisis. For instance, Air New Zealand said it raised one-way economy fares by NZ$20 (S$15) for short-haul international services and NZ$90 on long-haul flights.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore on March 25 said the green jet fuel levy on flights departing from Singapore will be postponed because of the impact of the Middle East war on airlines and passengers.

It will now apply to passengers departing Singapore from Jan 1, 2027, holding flight tickets sold from Oct 1, 2026. It was originally meant to apply to passengers leaving Singapore from October, holding tickets sold from April 1.

Passengers flying out of Singapore from Jan 1, 2027, will pay a levy of between $1 and $41.60 that will go towards buying sustainable aviation fuel, made mostly from waste materials like used cooking oil.

Ferries and cruises

Several ferry operators have imposed a fuel surcharge of $6 for trips from Singapore starting from March 12.

For instance, travellers can expect to pay $6 in fuel surcharge for a ferry ride from Singapore to Batam, and 65,000 rupiah (S$5) from Batam to Singapore, according to information on ferry operator Batam Fast’s Facebook page.

Fares differ depending on the operator, but the round-trip fare range is likely between 700,000 rupiah and 900,000 rupiah before the surcharge, The Jakarta Post reported.

Those going on cruises on ships like the Genting Dream or the Star Voyager will have to pay a surcharge of $15 per person for each night.

Cruise operators StarCruises and Dream Cruises in separate statements on March 17 said the surcharge would apply to new bookings made on or after March 20, and is applicable to guests aged two and older.