Meanwhile, Echuca motorists are paying up to 15 cents a litre more for unleaded petrol than some of their contemporaries in other parts of regional Victoria.
Data from the website PetrolSpy highlighted the discrepancy at the bowsers depending on where you live.
Echuca residents pay an average of $1.77 a litre for unleaded petrol.
That is on average 15 cents more than regional counterparts in Shepparton, where the average price for unleaded is $1.62.
On an examination of 11 major regional Victorian centres, Shepparton ranks well clear with that $1.62 price.
Second on the list is Ballarat where the average price is $1.67.
The Latrobe Valley (Moe, Morwell and Traralgon) sits third, with an average price of $1.69.
Bendigo ($1.73), Warrnambool ($1.74) and Geelong ($1.75) all pay a slightly cheaper rate than Echuca.
Echuca motorists pay the same prices at the bowser as Mildura, despite Mildura being more than 300km further from Melbourne than Echuca (542km to 224km).
The only major centre paying more for fuel than Echuca is Wodonga ($1.81 per litre).
The Echuca price point is felt across the region, with Kyabram ($1.80) and Rochester ($1.81) slightly higher.
Even Moama motorists are paying, on average, $1.80.
Grattan Institute transport associate Natasha Bradshaw discussed the differences in the prices.
“Generally, fuel costs more in regional areas because of higher costs for transport and storage, less demand for convenience sales like food and drinks, and less competition,” Mrs Bradshaw said.
“Fuel prices will fluctuate depending on international crude oil prices (which are determined by global supply and demand), our exchange rate, taxes, and the costs faced by fuel wholesalers and retailers.
“Base fuel prices are linked to crude oil prices, which is an internationally traded commodity. The international price is determined by global supply and demand, so Australia would not be able to influence these prices.
“In the longer term, motorists can make choices about how much fuel we use. Australians buy more gas-guzzling SUVs than almost anywhere in the world.”
In 2019, 66 per cent of the light vehicles sold in Australia were SUVs and utility vehicles compared with 44 per cent globally.
This reliance on cars that need a lot of petrol means Australians feel the pinch more than other people when petrol prices rise.
RACV general manager of mobility Julia Hunter encouraged motorists to use the arevo Fuel Finder app or website to find the best price.
“There are often substantial price variances for fuel, even in the same suburb or town,” Ms Hunter said.
“By using the Fuel Finder in the arevo app and simply shopping around for the cheapest price every time they fill up, arevo app users can save an average of $299.05 a year or up to 30.3 cents per litre on any given purchase.”
“The best action the government can take in this area is to introduce a carefully designed emissions ceiling. This ceiling is a limit on the average emissions of new vehicles that manufacturers can sell each year. This would come at a negligible cost to taxpayers, save drivers money because of lower fuel costs, and reduce carbon emissions and nasty exhaust-pipe pollutants.
“Not only can arevo help motorists make informed decisions about where they fill up, we can also help them save even more once they get to the counter.”
According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, there are a number of factors that determine the fluctuating price at the bowser.
“Petrol prices move up and down in regular patterns in Australia's largest capital cities. Petrol prices steadily decrease for a period followed by a sharper increase,” a spokesperson said.
“This pattern is also known as a petrol price cycle. It is a movement in the retail price from a low point (or trough) to a high point (or peak) to the following low point.
“In 2021-22, the average duration of price cycles in Sydney was about six weeks, in Melbourne and Brisbane it was five weeks and in Adelaide just over two weeks. Perth’s price cycle is weekly.”
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