While country motorists are starting to see petrol prices reduce, in line with what's happening in the city, Northern Tablelands MP Adam Marshall is adamant that regional areas have been getting a raw deal.
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On Thursday Mr Marshall again said the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission needed to take action against big fuel companies, who he said were charging too much for fuel in regional NSW.
It comes at a time when fuel consumption has fallen by 50 per cent nationwide. Fuel retailers argue that it means the fuel they have at the bowser was not bought at today's reduced prices, which is why it takes time for a price reduction to reach rural communities.
This is not the first time Mr Marshall has said the ACCC should look into the profits made by companies such as Shell, BP and Caltex.
And he has raised the issue of petrol prices in 2016, two years later in 2018, and as recently as earlier this month.
"This has been an ongoing issue for years," he said.
But there is some better news. Today in Armidale, unleaded was selling for 114.9 or 115.9 cents per litre.
"The retail fuel prices across the state are now starting to reflect accurately the huge drop in the world oil price, and the huge drop in the terminal gate price," Mr Marshall said.
The terminal gate price is the amount fuel companies pay once fuel arrives in Australia, and roughly, the price motorists in regional areas should be paying is about 10 cents above that.
"People talk about the world oil price, per barrel, but it's probably not an accurate measure of what fuel prices should be in regional Australia.
"The more accurate measure is what it costs a fuel retailer to purchase fuel once it comes off the ship in Australia. At the moment that's about 81-82 centre a litre, to purchase at the terminal gate in either Brisbane or Sydney.
"Then you've got to add transport costs."
He said the cheapest fuel in the local region was 96 cents a litre, which was what independent retailers were charging. he said that was about 20 cents cheaper than the Caltex, Shell and BP outlets in the region.
"They're still making decent profit at 96 cents a litre," Mr Marshall said of the independent retailers. "But that's a lot cheaper than $1.16.9 and $1.15.9, which is what it's being sold for at Caltex and BP.
"There's no doubt that the companies are engaging in price gouging and super profits."
He said service station owners for the major outlets were usually told what price to charge.
"So it's not the fault of the people that own the stores, it's the people higher up the chain in the Shell's, the BP's and the Caltex's that determine what the prices will be.
"Typically, independently owned service stations are cheaper because they don't answer to some boss in Sydney or Brisbane, they determine their price, each and every day, locally, rather than being told from above what the price will be," he said.
Australasian Convenience and Petroleum Marketers Association CEO, Mark McKenzie, told The Armidale Express that it was simplistic to judge what prices should be off the terminal gate price.
"Retail fuel prices today are not based on wholesale prices today, as many regional servos bought the fuel two or three weeks ago and/or use rolling averages that mean that the wholesale price they pay is well above the instantaneous or 'spot' wholesale price," Mr McKenzie said.
"It is this misunderstanding that is leading to people, including Mr Marshall, making claims that are simply not correct."
The Express contacted both Caltex and Shell for comment.
