Illegal importation of fuel from Angola hampers economy further – Gvt official
The energy sector is set to continue to be hampered by the illegal importation of fuel from Angola, an official said last week in a statement delivered to the cabinet.
The Minister of Mines and Energy (MME), Tom Alweendo, in a budget speech to the cabinet said, the practice has become an increasing trend that has a serious negative impact on the economy.
“For example, our roads are being maintained by a fuel levy that is collected from the purchase of fuel from fuel retailers. However, when motorists buy illegally imported fuel, no levy is being collected and as a result, our ability to maintain our roads is diminished,” Alweendo added.
According to Alweendo, his ministry has of late received calls that the ministry should start to import fuel from Angola because it is cheap.
“The fact is that Angola buys 80% of its fuel needs from the same international market where we buy our fuel, and they buy it at the same price. It, therefore, does not make any sense for Angola to sell us fuel at a cheaper price than what we currently pay,” he added.
According to Alweendo, the only reason why fuel is cheaper in Angola is that they make use of the revenue they receive from the export of their crude oil to subsidize the price to the consumer.
Fuel prices in the country saw petrol prices increase by 195 cents per litre, while diesel prices went up by 295 cents per litre from 6 April due to a hike in global oil prices.
