Fuel prices in Guyana

Fuel Prices in Guyana: What Drives the Cost at the Pump

Guyana sits in an unusual spot on the global fuel map. As of the latest reading, gasoline costs about $1.123 per liter (roughly 234.8 GYD), which works out to around $4.25 per US gallon. Diesel runs slightly higher at $1.195 per liter. Those figures place Guyana 37th cheapest out of 170 countries tracked, and comfortably below the world average of $1.484 per liter. For a nation that has only recently become a major oil exporter, the picture is more complicated than "produce oil, get cheap gas."

Why Guyanese Pump Prices Land Where They Do

The single biggest surprise for newcomers is that Guyana, despite the ExxonMobil-led offshore boom in the Stabroek Block, still imports nearly all of its refined gasoline and diesel. The country has no operating refinery, so crude pumped from its waters is sold abroad and finished fuel is shipped back in. That means domestic pump prices track international product markets, freight, and the exchange rate rather than the price of the crude lifted offshore.

Taxes and margins are the next lever. Imported fuel carries excise and consumption taxes plus a VAT framework, and the government has at times adjusted or suspended portions of the excise to shield consumers when world prices spike. This is closer to a tax-relief approach than a permanent fixed subsidy like those seen in Gulf producers. The Guyanese dollar (GYD) is also kept relatively stable against the US dollar, which removes the currency-shock volatility that pushes prices up sharply in floating-currency importers such as Pakistan.

The Price Trend: A Decade of Swings

Looking at the history from July 2016 to June 2026 tells the real story. The ten-year average sits at $0.964 per liter. The cheapest moment came on 6 April 2020, at just $0.622 per liter, as the COVID-19 demand collapse crushed global crude and product prices. The peak landed on 27 June 2022 at $1.286 per liter, during the post-pandemic and Ukraine-war energy crunch.

Today's $1.123 figure is meaningfully above the long-run average but well off the 2022 high. That tells you Guyana's prices have settled into the elevated post-2022 band without the runaway inflation seen elsewhere — a sign the government's tax tweaks and a steady currency have absorbed some of the global shock. It is a regional pattern: neighbor Trinidad & Tobago, a long-established Caribbean energy producer, also keeps pump prices below the world average, though through more direct subsidy than Guyana uses.

How Guyana Compares Globally

Ranking 37th of 170 makes Guyana cheaper than most of Europe and Asia but pricier than the very lowest-cost exporters. It costs more to fill up here than in mountainous, hydro-rich importers like Bhutan, yet considerably less than in many West African importers such as Liberia, where weak logistics and currency pressure push costs higher. For a fuller picture of where Guyana fits, browse the full table of world fuel prices.

The open question for the years ahead is whether Guyana's oil wealth will eventually translate into a domestic refinery or a formal subsidy program. For now, drivers benefit indirectly: oil revenue gives the treasury room to cushion fuel taxes when global markets turn ugly, even though the fuel itself still arrives by tanker from overseas.

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