Africa-Press – Namibia. NAMIBIA has over 300 licensed oil companies, and the government has announced it will not issue new licences for wholesalers and fuel stations.
NAMIBIA has over 300 licensed oil companies, and the government has announced it will not issue new licences for wholesalers and fuel stations.
The total of 309 oil traders is considered too many for a small market, contributing in part to high fuel prices.
Ministry of Mines and Energy spokesperson Andreas Simon last week said the ministry has noted with great concern that both the fuel retail and wholesale markets are saturated with licences, a situation he said has “created problems that ultimately lead to high fuel prices in the country”.
He said therefore the ministry, as of last week, will not accept applications for new retail sites and wholesale licences nationwide until further notice.
Exceptions, however, are applications for fuel consumer installation certificates and other licence amendments.
Oluzizi, Otesa, Petrosol, United Africa Group and Total Energies are among the current licence holders.
Fuel prices in Namibia have over the past months reached record levels – cancelling out all gains that companies and individuals are making in recovering from the onslaught of the Covid-19 pandemic.
At the end of July, the energy ministry left fuel prices unchanged at N$22,28 for petrol and N$22,77 for diesel, and there expectations are that decreases would occur towards the end of the year.
“While oil market fundamentals should keep global oil prices high, recessionary fears and subsequent reduced demand for oil implies that oil prices could fall further. We therefore see risks to additional fuel price hikes in Namibia to be balanced,” said Simonis Storm Securities analyst Theo Klein late last month.
This suspension will shatter many companies’ strategies, such as the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia, which has indicated it planned to set up about 33 sites countrywide.
“We are aware of this moratorium and it will severely affect the execution of the retail expansion strategy. We currently have several sites under construction which have been approved.
“Thereafter we will have to comply with the moratorium and see how and when things will change,” said Namcor spokesperson Paulo Coelho.
There have also been major oil discoveries off the Namibian coast by both TotalEnergies and Shell – with commercialisation some five to 10 years ahead.
CHEVRON IN NAM
About two weeks ago, an American company was reported to be acquiring a majority stake in a block off-shore Namibia, close to TotalEnergies’ Venus block, which was discovered recently.
Namibia has oil depots at Otjiwarongo, Keetmanshoop, Grootfontein, Mariental, Otavi, Tsumeb, Okahandja, and Ondangwa, which appear to be under pressure due to many retailers.
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The total of 309 oil traders is considered too many for a small market, contributing in part to high fuel prices.
Ministry of Mines and Energy spokesperson Andreas Simon last week said the ministry has noted with great concern that both the fuel retail and wholesale markets are saturated with licences, a situation he said has “created problems that ultimately lead to high fuel prices in the country”.
He said therefore the ministry, as of last week, will not accept applications for new retail sites and wholesale licences nationwide until further notice.
Exceptions, however, are applications for fuel consumer installation certificates and other licence amendments.
Oluzizi, Otesa, Petrosol, United Africa Group and Total Energies are among the current licence holders.
Fuel prices in Namibia have over the past months reached record levels – cancelling out all gains that companies and individuals are making in recovering from the onslaught of the Covid-19 pandemic.
At the end of July, the energy ministry left fuel prices unchanged at N$22,28 for petrol and N$22,77 for diesel, and there expectations are that decreases would occur towards the end of the year.
“While oil market fundamentals should keep global oil prices high, recessionary fears and subsequent reduced demand for oil implies that oil prices could fall further. We therefore see risks to additional fuel price hikes in Namibia to be balanced,” said Simonis Storm Securities analyst Theo Klein late last month.
This suspension will shatter many companies’ strategies, such as the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia, which has indicated it planned to set up about 33 sites countrywide.
“We are aware of this moratorium and it will severely affect the execution of the retail expansion strategy. We currently have several sites under construction which have been approved.
“Thereafter we will have to comply with the moratorium and see how and when things will change,” said Namcor spokesperson Paulo Coelho.
There have also been major oil discoveries off the Namibian coast by both TotalEnergies and Shell – with commercialisation some five to 10 years ahead.
CHEVRON IN NAM
About two weeks ago, an American company was reported to be acquiring a majority stake in a block off-shore Namibia, close to TotalEnergies’ Venus block, which was discovered recently.
Namibia has oil depots at Otjiwarongo, Keetmanshoop, Grootfontein, Mariental, Otavi, Tsumeb, Okahandja, and Ondangwa, which appear to be under pressure due to many retailers.
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