(Bloomberg) --

The price for Britain’s motorists to fill up their cars with diesel reached a fresh high, in another blow to consumers grappling with the nation’s cost-of-living crisis.

The average UK diesel price rose to a record 180.29 pence ($2.24) per liter on Sunday, up from a previous high of 179.9 pence on March 23, according to the RAC, the country’s main motoring organization.

Despite the government announcing a cut of five pence per liter to fuel duty until next March, UK diesel prices at the pump have risen following a decision to ban all shipments of Russian oil. One-third of Britain’s diesel imports come from Russia, meaning that shunning Moscow’s crude has put further upward pressure on energy prices at a time when Britons are already grappling with soaring inflation.

“Efforts to move away from importing Russian diesel have led to a tightening of supply and pushed up the price retailers pay for diesel,” RAC fuel spokesperson Simon Williams said Monday in a statement. “While the wholesale price has eased in the last few days this is likely to be temporary, especially if the European Union agrees to ban imports of Russian oil.”

EU foreign ministers are meeting in Brussels on Monday to discuss the next round of sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine. The bloc’s diplomats have floated a delay in the phased-in oil ban after Hungary objected, saying the step would be too damaging to its economy. 

The price of gasoline, known as petrol in the UK, has also risen since the start of May, averaging 166.65 pence at the start of this month. That’s just below a record high of 167.3 pence reached on March 22, according to RAC data.

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