Pressure is mounting on the Northern Territory government to take action on stubbornly high fuel prices, with calls for a fresh inquiry into the reasons behind the rates.
On Tuesday, drivers in Darwin were paying about $1.95 a liter for petrol despite the wholesale price being close to the average of interstate capitals of $1.59.
The average price per litre in New South Wales was $1.67, or almost 30 cents a litre cheaper than the Northern Territory.
The Opposition leader Lia Finocchiaro has called for a new parliamentary inquiry, which she said could potentially recommend a cap on profits or prices.
Territorians are paying up to 40 cents a litre more for their fuel than any other jurisdictions in the nation, according to Ms Finocchiaro.
According to the latest official data, petrol prices in the Northern Territory increased higher than in any other jurisdiction this year.
Automotive fuel was up by 6.2 per cent, well above the capital city average of 4.2 per cent.
The Northern Territory opposition is proposing legislation that would force retailers to publish their profit margins.
Chief Minister Natasha Fyles said the government stood ready to take further action if apparent profit margins remained high without a reasonable explanation. Fyles said she had written to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission ACCC and fuel companies on the issue but did not say what she had told, or asked, them.
There would be an uproar at similar prices in Melbourne or Sydney.''
FuelTrac General Manager Geoff Trotter said the Northern Territory was not without options that are already available, pointing out laws dating back to 1949 that allow a Consumer Affairs Commissioner to set a maximum fuel price.
Such a step can be taken during natural disasters or to make sure consumers are benefitting from the operation of a competitive market. Former chief minister Michael Gunner previously threatened to create a profit cap when petrol stations made similar margins of around 35 cents a liter in 2020.
The Australian Capital Territory, Tasmania and Northern Territory were all suffering from high fuel prices because they attracted less attention than larger capital cities, according to Mr Trotter.
Petrol companies can do anything they like.
If they were charging the prices they are charging in Darwin in Sydney or Melbourne or Brisbane, there would be an absolute uproar. It would be on the news, there would be politicians being asked all these embarrassing questions. Alice Springs motorists are still paying more than $2 a liter to fill up, with petrol prices in remote parts of the territory being more expensive.
The cost was combining with other factors to drive people away from living in the region, according to Matt Paterson, the city's mayor.
Air fares, petrol prices, house prices are horrendous at the moment. Cr Paterson said that no one can justify why fuel prices were so high in Alice Springs, but expected territory Labor wouldn't support the opposition's call for an inquiry.
He said that he just wants people to know that we are getting the raw end of the stick.
Federal Labor MP Luke Gosling said that the Commonwealth needed to make sure the ACCC has the teeth to enforce fairness and transparency, but that may end up being a role for the Northern Territory government to make sure there is transparency from fuel retailers.
According to Gosling, the fuel excise tax is unlikely to be extended beyond September, because of the state of the federal budget.