The Herald (Harare)
4 July 2009
Harare — FUEL prices have gone up in and around Harare as suppliers respond to firming prices of the commodity on the international market.
Prices of diesel on the global market went up by an average US$0,11 and US$0,20 for petrol, forcing suppliers and service providers to pass the increases on to the consumer.
The price of fuel per barrel is hovering around US$70 on the international market.
A survey by The Herald yesterday revealed that although petrol was readily available at most filling stations, diesel was in short supply with available supplies being sold through coupons.
Most service stations in Harare were selling petrol at US$1,50 per litre, while a few were offering the commodity at US$1,30 per litre.
Diesel was being sold for US$1,06 per litre, but through coupons only.
The scarcity of diesel has forced some commuter omnibus operators to withdraw their services, resulting in commuters failing to get transport to and from work.
In an interview yesterday, former Petroleum Marketers Association president, Mr Masimba Kambarami, who is a major player in the sector, attributed the increases in pump prices to the increase of fuel prices on the international market.
"The increase in pump prices of fuel is in response to the firming of prices of fuel on the global market. The global price of fuel has been going up for the past month.
"The current diesel supply constraints being encountered in the country are attributable to logistical problems in the importation of the commodity through the pipeline," he said.
Mr Kambarami said the diesel situation was likely to improve in the coming week as orders had started arriving in the country, while the Government had also issued import licenses to importers.
A player in the sector who declined to be named said there were a number of factors that were pushing up fuel prices. He said a cartail had emerged in the fuel sector locally and internationally that was forcing the price of petroleum products to go up.
He blamed the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries and some major oil merchants with huge ships full of fuel stationed in the high seas for forcing the movements of the prices of petroleum products up.
"We import fuel from countries such as Saudi Arabia, but others do not get the product directly from the source, but from some middlemen who already have the product in the seas.
"So their prices are like trading of shares on the stock market and this side we do not have control over the pricing mechanism," he said.
He said the cost of transporting fuel from the ports into the country also had an effect on the pricing mechanism, saying it was difficult for local companies to use the pipeline owing to the costs associated with it.
"At least there must be 30 million litres in the pipeline for someone to get fuel this side from Beira. Many small companies do not have a lot of resources to import such an amount," he said.
He however, allayed fears that the prices would continue on an upward trend due to the global recession.
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