TONGA'S prices for Diesel, Kerosene, Petrol and LPG Gas will rise from mid-night on Sunday April 17, the government's Competent Authority Committee announced late on Friday, April 15.

The Wholesale Price for LPG Gas in Tongatapu and Vava'u will go up by $237 from $3,734 per tonne to $3,971 per tonne, and the retail price will go up by 24 seniti from $4.17per kilogram to $4.41 per kilogram.

The price for the common 13kg gas tank for home use will go up from $54.21 to $57.33.

The retail price for diesel leads will go up by 18 seniti from $2.89 to $3.07 per litre, and Kerosene will go up by 16 seniti from $2.29 to $2.45 per litre and petrol will go up by 13 seniti from $2.80 to $2.93 per litre.

The hike in the price of fuel is blamed on the political instability in the Middle East and a drop in the value of the Tongan pa'anga against the US dollar.

While the price of fuel has been on a steady rise since April a rise in the price of electricity has been looming. Tonga Power Ltd. (TPL) has made a public announcement that the price of electricity will inevitably go up. The timing of the rise in the cost of power will depend on the outcome of a meeting of the Board of TPL and the Minister of Public Enterprises, which according to the CEO of TPL has been scheduled for the middle of this month.