Govt dismisses claims over fuel shortage in Tanzania
Minister for Energy January Makamba on Friday dismissed media reports that Tanzania was currently facing a shortage of petroleum products following reports that caused temporary tension among Tanzanians online, forcing the Bumbuli MP (Chama cha Mapinduzi – CCM) to come forward and offer clarifications.
On Friday, Nipashe newspaper quoted Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) Director-General Dr James Mataragio as saying that the fuel stock that is available can only last for 15 days, something that both Mr Mataragio and Mr Makamba denied to be true.
“There is a total of 90.7milion litres of diesel as of today [November 12, 2021] morning,” Mr Makamba said in a Twitter post. “A fuel tanker called Sloane Square is currently offloading another 60.9 million litres which bring the total to 151.6 litres which can be used for 24 days.”
Mr Makamba added that the petrol stock in tanks now stands at 100. 3million litres. He wrote in another Twitter post: “There is fuel tanker James Cook which is offloading 22.4 million litres while another ship called Jag Punit is on the way carrying 305 million litres of petrol that will add up to 153. 4 litres that will be enough for 34 days.”
He also said that Tanzania currently has 3.9 million litres of kerosene that can be used in 46 days.
Following the tension, the Tanzania Association of Oil Marketing Companies (TAOMAC), which is an association whose members constitute 95 per cent of the imports of the petroleum products in Tanzania, also came forward to allay the fears that started to grip Tanzanians.
Writing on their Instagram account, TAOMAC said: [We] are aware that there is a sufficient stock of petroleum products in the country as of now. We also know that our members have already ordered stocks for up to December 2021 deliveries. Up until now vessels are arriving and discharging as scheduled with one Diesel vessel currently discharging.”
Dar residents struggle with water rationing
Residents of Tanzania’s commercial capital of Dar es Salaam are currently experiencing water shortage following a water-rationing plan that the Dar es Salaam Water and Sewerage Authority (Dawasa) announced recently.
Residents from various parts of Dar es Salaam like Kinondoni, Tabata, Segerea and others have reported going with water for an entire day, with others complaining that the service is cut off unannounced.
On November 8, 2021, DAWASA announced the decision of water-rationing, saying they reached the decision as a result of climate change effects reducing water content from their source.
DAWASA Chief Executive Officer Cyprian Luhemeja was quoted then as saying that while the authority used to collect 520 million litres of water per day in the past, the amount has dropped to only 460 litres, necessitating the water ratio.
Tanzania oil import bill rises 18pc
Tanzania’s oil-import bill rose 18 per cent to $1.73 billion in the 12 months ending September due to a rise in global prices, business website MarketWatch reported Friday, quoting the Bank of Tanzania.
Oil accounted for a fifth of the goods import bill during the period, the bank said, the website noted. The price of crude oil in the global market rose by 6.5 per cent on month to $74.6 a barrel in September due to an increase in demand attributable to the recovery of the global economy from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, the bank said.
In September, Tanzania’s domestic pump prices of petrol, diesel and kerosene registered an annual increase of 30.7 per cent, 25.6 per cent and 26.3 per cent, respectively, according to BoT.
However, Tanzania’s energy inflation eased to 4.6 per cent from 5.1 per cent in June 2021, despite an upward trend in domestic petroleum pump prices, the bank said.
The 12-month inflation rate rose to 4 per cent in September from 3.6 per cent in June, the bank said.
Tanzania’s inflation is projected to remain within the target of between 3 per cent and 5 per cent in the remaining period of 2021-22, despite slowly edging up since June 2021, the bank said.
“The projection is bolstered by adequate food supply and stable exchange rate, which are expected to partially dampen the impact of high oil prices,” the bank said.
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