PETROL prices are continuing to fall across south Essex.

One oil giant believes the slide could continue for up to three years, with petrol predicted to dip below £1 per litre.

Fuel prices in Basildon, Castle Point, Rochford and Southend have plummeted from lows of 112.7p a litre for petrol and 118.7p for diesel at the end of December, to as little as 103.7p for petrol and 107.9p for diesel today.

BP boss Bob Dudley believes prices could remain low for up to three years, before peaking again.

In an interview with the BBC, he said falling investment would curb supply and force the price back up.

However, Paul Sutton, 64, a cabbie and chairman of the Southend Licensed Taxi Drivers’ Association, said previous experience had armed motorists with the knowledge to keep the fuel companies in line.

He said: “The idea of prices staying low for up to three years is fantastic news, but I hope companies like BP and Esso remember telling us when prices were high that they order their fuel two or three years in advance.

“If they are buying now for the next couple of years, they’re obviously buying at a very low price per barrel, and I know our union will be looking very closely at them.”

Visvanathan Bahsundaram, a price analyst for the Park Garage Group, which has a petrol station on Southchurch Road, Southend, said the prediction would be great news if it turned out to be true.

He said: “January is generally a quiet month for garages after Christmas and New Year. But we’re already seeing profits 10 per cent up on the same period last year, so it would be very good for us.

“At the moment, the price is holding.We’ve not seen a change in the last week. The lowest price we’ve seen so far, apart from the Birmingham garage which cut prices to 99p a litre, is about 102p.”