Petroleum Importers Limited (PIL) general manager Martin Msimuko says the consortium of private sector oil marketing companies is working to beef up fuel stocks in the country.

He said this in an interview yesterday when his firm offloaded one million litres of diesel brought into the country by rail from Nacala Port in Mozambique.

Msimuko said the screeching train-track sounds of the consignment of a 25-wagon train carrying diesel should bring hope to many stranded motorists looking for the commodity.

He said: “This is the first consignment this month to arrive through Nacala Port. But we are arranging to bring in four million litres of petrol in a bid to normalise the fuel situation.”

Msimuko said for the past four days PIL, has already brought into the country two million litres of petrol and 1.9 million litres of diesel.

Msimuko: We will beef up fuel stocks

Dwindling foreign exchange reserves have in recent months stifled fuel imports into the country, forcing some oil marketing companies to ration both diesel and petrol.

But yesterday Msimuko said the banks have responded positively and he was optimistic that the consortium of private oil marketing companies will be fully covered to import adequate fuel.

“Let me express my gratitude for the support PIL gets from banks through the Reserve Bank of Malawi which has enabled us to access forex without problems,” he said.

The National Energy Policy stipulates that by 2022, 30 percent of fuel must be imported by road through the Dar es Salaam Corridor in Tanzania, 50 percent through Beira in Mozambique and 20 percent by rail through the Nacala Corridor.

“For PIL, we have already revised our budget so that we reach the 20 percent mark. Currently, we are at 15 percent. We hope that by next year, we will be able to import 20 percent of fuel using rail.

“Bringing fuel through rail not only brings more cargo but it is also speedy as compared to trucks,” said Msimuko.

Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority data shows that on average Malawians use 845 000 litres of petrol and 834 000 litres of diesel in a day.

National Oil Company of Malawi (Nocma), a government-owned company, last Thursday said it was also finalising paperwork to access new facilities as part of efforts to resolve the current fuel crisis.

In an earlier interview, Nocma spokesperson Rex Chikoko told The Nation the facilities include the $50 million line credit Treasury secured from the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (Badea) in September.

He said: “Nocma has unlocked a total of approximately 30 million litres combined volumes from various ports of Nacala, Beira, and Dar es Salaam.”

Chikoko said as of Thursday, 180 trucks were in transit and 200 were being loaded from various ports.

PIL, which imports about 248 million litres of Malawi’s fuel annually, is mandated to bring into the country 50 percent of the country’s fuel requirements while Nocma brings in the remaining half.

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