Six Moranbah Servos Share One Unleaded Price at 272.9, 33 Cents Above Mackay
Every servo selling unleaded in Moranbah is on exactly 272.9. That is the highest median of the 129 Queensland postcodes where at least three servos have lodged an unleaded price in the past week, and it sits 33.0 cents above Mackay, about 150 km away as the crow flies. The six sites have moved as one for more than two months.
These figures use prices lodged with Queensland's official fuel price reporting scheme, as read at 1:00pm AEST on 4th Nov 2026. All times are Queensland time.
Thirteen rises and one cut
The six are Ampol Moranbah on Griffin Street, BP Moranbah on Goonyella Road, BP Peakdowns on the Peak Downs Highway, Caltex Moranbah on Moranbah Access Road, and the two United Petroleum sites on Mills Avenue and Bacon Street.
On 1st Sep, all six were on 223.9. By 9th Oct they had reached 275.9 in 13 steps, a rise of 52.0 cents. Since 2nd Sep, every unleaded price lodged at these servos has been one of 14 values, and all six have used 13 of them. The 14th is 253.9, which the two United sites skipped on 17th Sep by going straight from 249.9 to 256.9.
The one cut in that time came almost three weeks after the peak and took 3.0 cents off. Caltex moved from 275.9 to 272.9 at 12:54pm on Wednesday 28th Oct. BP Moranbah, BP Peakdowns and Ampol followed the next morning, all between 10:44am and 10:52am, and both United sites matched at 4:02pm.
Who moves first
United went first on 11 of the 13 rises, six of them before 8am, and Caltex led the other two. Ampol and BP did not move first once. On seven of the rises, Ampol and BP Moranbah followed later the same day.
The longest waits came in late September and early October. On 23rd Sep the United sites went to 265.9 and sat 4 cents above everyone else until 28th Sep. On 3rd Oct they moved to 269.9, and Caltex, Ampol and both BP sites joined them on 7th Oct.
Matching prices are not evidence of wrongdoing on their own. In a small town where every price is public, a servo that sits above its neighbours risks losing customers, and one that cuts can expect a response. In Moranbah the rest follow whenever one site moves, and since the peak that has meant a single cut of 3.0 cents.
How the gap to Mackay grew
Mackay's median was 209.9 on 1st Sep, 14.0 cents under Moranbah. It peaked at 245.9 on 13th Oct, a rise of 36.0 cents against Moranbah's 52.0, and has since eased 6.0 cents to 239.9 across 16 servos. The gap reached 36.0 cents on 27th Oct and is 33.0 cents today, more than double the 14.0 cents on 1st Sep.
The gap holds within brands too. United MacKay lodged 229.5 at 8am today, 43.4 cents under both United sites in Moranbah. The three BP sites in the Mackay median are on 239.9 to 241.9, and Caltex Racecourse is on 239.9.
Freight to an inland mining town explains some of a regional premium, but it is harder to see how it explains Moranbah sitting well above towns just as far inland. Ampol Crokers Clermont, about 100 km to the south west, is on 235.9, which is 37.0 cents under Ampol Moranbah. In Dysart, about 72 km south, Ampol Dysart is on 258.9 and BP Dysart lifted from 235.9 to 256.9 at 9:44am today. Even after that lift, both Dysart sites are 14 to 16 cents under Moranbah.
What it means at the pump
A 60 litre tank of unleaded in Moranbah costs $19.80 more than one at Mackay's median price, and the savings calculator shows what that adds up to over a month. BP Moranbah lists E10 at 270.9, just 2.0 cents under its unleaded. On diesel, all six last lodged 299.9 and none has lodged a change since 28th Sep, so check the pump before you fill.
If your trip passes through Clermont or Dysart, compare unleaded petrol prices along the way. I will be watching the price trends for signs that Moranbah is catching up with the fall on the coast.
Armed with this information, Moranbah motorists heading south west can save 37.0 cents a litre by filling up at Ampol Crokers Clermont.