Petrol Shortage Hits Zambia as a Result of a Perfect Storm

A recent check around the streets of Zambia’s capital city of Lusaka revealed that most service stations are out of petrol and have been for an ever-increasing number of days. The ongoing spate of fuel shortages dates back as far as August 2024, and unfortunately it only seems to be getting worse. The empty service stations are causing dismay among Zambian motorists and a slowdown in the economy, leading to a growing array of speculation regarding the cause of the problem. There are many reasons being advanced to explain the country’s current petrol shortages resulting in what is now being referred to as “the perfect storm”. Here are the main contributors:

• Following the closure of Zambia’s only petrol refinery in Ndola, the country has had to transport the bulk of its imported petrol by road.
• The TAZAMA pipeline which runs from Dar es Salaam to Ndola is currently pumping diesel only.
• Previously the fuel shortages were attributed in part to congestion at the Port of Beira, and this problem continues to persist.
• The post-election political turmoil in Mozambique has caused on-going disruption of trucks carrying fuel to the Zambian market, resulting in a significantly reduced flow of petrol to the country.
• Zimbabwe’s new $25 000 duty on fuel tankers in transit, charged at point of entry and refunded at port of exit, has thrown a significant logistical spanner in the works as it is proving very difficult to implement.
• The Third Country rule requires foreign registered trucks to enter a country of truck origin before entering Zambia. Most tankers that transport petrol into Zambia are Zimbabwean registered and based and are currently prohibited from entering Zambia directly from Mozambique.

The government through the Zambian Energy Regulation Board has staged a number of interventions to counter the problems listed above. These include directing importers to pre-clear their products to minimise border delays and the lifting of restrictions on the movement of petroleum trucks after 18:00hrs. Zambian authorities are currently engaging the Mozambican government to temporarily relax the third country rule, allowing Zimbabwean trucks to enter Zambia from Mozambique directly. Oil Marketing Companies in Zambia involved in fuel imports are also being encouraged to relax their stringent tender procedures to allow Zambian registered tankers to transport petrol from Mozambique. However, much still needs to be done to restore the free flow of petrol and revitalise an economy that is currently grinding dangerously close to a halt.