Tesco petrol - Motorists to check out real competition

MOTORISTS will applaud today’s prediction of a petrol price war following the first salvos in Kerry and Dublin as supermarket giant Tesco moves to open dozens of stations nationwide.

In a rare display of competition, a phenomenon seldom seen in this country, the figures say it all. In Killarney, for instance, Tesco charges 79.9c for a litre of petrol and 72.9c per litre of diesel. This compares to a national average of 90.8c per litre of petrol and 83.4 per litre of diesel.

Not surprisingly, motorists are queuing up to fill up at Tesco pumps. It is regrettable that several local stations have been put out of business in the face of competition but the obvious message is that motorists want competition in the market, especially, if they save 12% on annual petrol costs.