Fuel supply will stabilize over the weekend: Kachaje

The government has assured the public that the current fuel shortage is expected to stabilize this weekend, as long as normal supply chains remain uninterrupted.

Addressing the press in Lilongwe yesterday, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (Mera), Henry Kachaje, attributed the hiccup in fuel supply to a public holiday in Tanzania and the post-election violence in Mozambique, among other challenges.

The briefing was jointly held with Minister of Information and Digitization, Moses Kunkuyu, and CEO of Nocma, Clement Kanyama, to update the public on the fuel situation.

Kachaje said: “Once the supply chain is disrupted, we are very affected as a country because we expect to receive fuel every day because of our current situation. That is why it is important to always have fuel in our fueling facilities. storage”.

In his speech, Kunkuyu stated that authorities have allocated $21.5 million (about K37.6 billion) to fuel importers to pay suppliers and authorize the loading of 26.9 million liters of fuel to mitigate the ongoing crisis.

The minister added that apart from the 44 trucks heading to Malawi, 29 trucks carrying 1.1 million liters of petrol are also on the way.

Kunkuyu said: “There are also 150 trucks carrying 5.7 million liters of petrol and nine trucks carrying 350,000 liters of diesel. In addition, 23 wagons are loading 800,000 liters which will be shipped on October 23, 2024.

“Also, 144 trucks with 5.5 million liters of petrol are currently being loaded in Beira and Dar es Salaam, along with 100 trucks with 3.8 million liters of diesel.”

He also disclosed that the government has secured an additional $50 million from a revolving facility with the Arab Bank for the Economic Development of Africa (Badea), with ongoing negotiations to expand the loan to $100 million.

Kunkuyu attributed the current fuel crisis to a 10-day suspension of fuel deliveries by suppliers to whom the government owes substantial amounts, as well as persistent foreign exchange shortages.

Despite public pressure to increase fuel prices to normalize supplies, the minister said the government will not take that route.

He observed that the increase in fuel prices would lead to an increase in the prices of goods and raw materials, which the government wants to avoid.

Kunkuyu said recommendations have been made for the past three years to increase fuel prices, but the government has remained steadfast in its decision.

But Kachaje noted that current fuel prices do not reflect costs.

For his part, Kanyama indicated that it takes one day to transport the fuel by rail from Nacala to Malawi, while it takes two and a half days by truck from Beira. From Dar es Salaam, it takes four and a half days.