Winter heating varies across South Africa, chasing the weather.
A 9kg gas bottle costs roughly the same whether you're buying it in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban or Bloemfontein.
But while the difference between cities may be measured in rand, the difference in how long that bottle lasts can be measured in weeks. For households turning to gas this winter, the real cost is often determined not by the price of the refill but by how quickly cold weather burns through it.
Earlier this week, analysis of the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources data showed that the difference between some of South Africa's cheapest and most expensive regulated LPG zones is just R13.50 on a standard 9kg cylinder. Retail prices across major centres also showed surprisingly little variation, with many 9kg refills selling for around R365.
Yet South Africa's vastly different winter climates mean households can face very different heating bills despite paying broadly similar prices for gas.
