THE Government has assured members of the public that the
fuel situation in the country will improve starting from today after the
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe allocated foreign currency to some indigenous service
stations to import fuel.
This comes at a time when the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory
Authority (Zera) is crafting some regulations to allow dealers who have access
to foreign currency to import fuel and ease pressure from the Central Bank.
The country has been experiencing fuel shortages lately
which saw commuter bus operators countrywide hiking fares and leaving commuters
stranded.
Zera acting chief executive officer, Mr Eddington Mazambani
yesterday told journalists on the sidelines of the ongoing conference of the
Regional Energy Regulatory Association of Southern Africa (Rera) that the
Reserve Bank had allocated foreign currency to some indigenous fuel dealers.
“What I know is that there are constraints with regards to
logistical arrangements and funding which have now been addressed through the
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe and we are made to believe that the situation will
improve starting from tomorrow.
“There have been allocations to some indigenous fuel
companies and we expect this to improve the availability of fuel as these
companies complement big oil companies,” he said.
Mr Mazambani could not be drawn into naming the selected
indigenous suppliers but said Zera will soon name outlets that are allowed to
import and sell fuel in foreign currency.
“We are confident that the situation will improve because
the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe is tasked to ensure that we have such facilities
for fuel. The RBZ Governor Dr John Mangudya announced in his recent Monetary
Policy Statement that people with access to foreign currency are allowed to
import fuel directly on their own for sale to those who have foreign currency
at a small cost,” he said.
Mr Mazambani said Zera was crafting regulations to ensure
that the arrangement comes into effect.
“Very soon we will be publishing a list of outlets that are
allowed to sell in foreign currency and that on its own will relieve pressure
on the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe which will then cater for the general public
which doesn’t have access to foreign currency,” said Mr Mazambani.
He said he would not pre-empt the criteria used to select
outlets that are allowed to sell in foreign currency until consultations on the
regulations are finalised.
In an interview, Energy and Power Development Minister
Engineer Fortune Chasi said the country’s fuel challenges are a result of
foreign currency.
He said fuel stations allowed to sell in foreign currency
are those that serve the diplomatic community who have foreign currency at
their disposal.
“The genesis of our shortages is heavily linked to foreign
currency challenges. So, until such a time we have sufficient foreign currency
it makes sense to say we will have some shortages of some level which is
consistent with the foreign currency shortages.
“However, we have a very clear vision as a country and we
will come to a time when we have plentiful supply,” said Eng Chasi.
He said there are a number of issues the country needs to
address even at consumer level and the entire energy supply chain, among them
cost of energy, what is happening at international level and the capacity of
the financial sector to enable the country to import enough fuel. Herald
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