The Sunday Mail
Kuda Bwititi: Chief Reporter
Government will not approve any arbitrary increase in fuel prices and the country has enough stocks of both diesel and petrol, a senior Government official has said.Last week, a consultancy firm, Genesis Analytics, which was hired by the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority to study the country’s fuel pricing model, recommended an increase of fuel prices by two cents. There was also speculation of a looming fuel shortage among motorists. In an interview last week, Secretary in the Ministry of Energy and Power Development, Mr Partson Mbiriri allayed fears of a fuel price hike, saying Cabinet policy does not allow such an increase.
“The price increase was proposed by an independent consultant who suggested that the retailers are getting a raw deal and they need to get more to cover their overheads. “It is a study which we have not endorsed as yet because we have an existing Cabinet policy which says no to any wanton increase of fuel. “We are cognisant of the fact that any fuel price increase will have a negative impact on the broader economy.”
Mr Mbiriri accused those in the industry of dishonesty, saying they advocate for fuel price increases without justification.
“We always face that challenge in the sector, at times the operators are not honest. “The industry is not being fair to motorists. When the price of fuel is increasing on the international market they call for instant adjustment, notwithstanding that at that time they might have stocks from several months or weeks before,” he said. “On the other hand, when the international price of fuel decreases, they are not quick to reduce prices.”
Mr Mbiriri said the country has adequate stocks of fuel and any shortage of the commodity is being artificially created.
“There is no need to panic whatsoever, we have adequate fuel stocks in the country. “Some situations are induced to convey a certain message but we are always wary of such attempts and we do our best to manage the situation. “We monitor Fuel on Board prices fortnightly and determine what it will be for diesel and petrol. The industry is not fair to motorists so we constantly monitor the situation.”
Mr Mbiriri said there has been an improvement in honouring Nostro account payments for fuel imports.
“We are having an improving situation in terms of the Reserve Bank. The past few weeks, they have been progressively releasing more and more money and giving special priority to the energy sector so in that regard we are pretty satisfied with the situation,” he said.
Last month, RBZ Governor Dr John Mangudya said the central bank would draw from the US$215 million secured from international financial institutions to deal with outgoing foreign payments following concerns that motorists were using plastic money to buy the commodity but there were no corresponding export earnings to import the fuel.
