Findlay is a foolish boy - Peter Mumba
By George Chellah
Mon 22 Mar. 2010, 04:01 CAT
PETER Mumba yesterday described Terence Findlay as a foolish boy who has been brought up very badly. Reacting to Ndola businessman Findlay's open revelation of his hatred for late president Levy Mwanawasa and the Lamba-speaking people in general to Lusaka lawyer Wynter Kabimba, Mumba who is former energy permanent secretary said the Lamba were very offended by Findlay's outbursts.
“Actually I won't hesitate to say that he is an …… and a foolish boy who has been brought up very badly. How does he bring in the Lambas and the late president in his defilement case?” Mumba asked.
“Because the right people who brought up this issue were the police and not the president and for that matter why should he start talking about the president who is no more?”
He wondered why Findlay did not bring up the matter when president Mwanawasa was still alive if he were courageous and man enough.
“And for the Lambas, it's a pity he actually stays in a Lamba area and then he must start insulting Lambas. Everybody knows that Findlay is a careless chap on the Copperbelt, especially in Ndola we know his lifestyle. That's his nature, that's his character,” Mumba said.
“Findlay has got some property in Lambaland, if he doesn't want to cooperate with Lambas then he can as well leave Lambaland because the Lambas actually have been phoning me and they are very upset. So Findlay should actually go to his village if he has a village at all.”
He maintained that Findlay should not drag the Lamba people into issues of defilement.
“We shouldn't be brought into this. If he has a bone to chew with Honourable George Mpombo he should actually confine his statement to Honourable Mpombo and not to generalise and include the late president and the Lambas,” Mumba said.
“He should actually watch his movements in Lambaland because they are very upset. Actually an apology is required from him and if he doesn't do so the people of Lambaland will decide what next.”
He questioned the reasoning of people who considered Findlay for leadership.
“He is not fit to be a leader. I don't even know how those who think he can be a leader think,” Mumba said.
Copperbelt Province UPND chairperson Elisha Matambo, who is also Lamba, said Findlay's remarks confirmed President Rupiah Banda and former president Frederick Chiluba's hatred for president Mwanawasa and the Lambas in general.
“Rupiah Banda and the government have been insulting the Lamba people for a long time. Findlay is an agent of Chiluba and Chiluba is an agent of Rupiah. He came here to campaign for Rupiah and he was going round with Findlay. So since Findlay has said he hates Levy and Lambas it confirms that Rupiah through Findlay and Chiluba hate Lamba people so much,” said Matambo.
“That's a serious insult on Lamba people. We demand for an apology from Findlay within 48 hours. If he doesn't we will organise serious demonstrations. We are meeting right now as Lambas, we will not let him operate freely if he doesn't withdraw the statement or apologise.
We will demonstrate and make his stay on the Copperbelt very difficult. We don't even know if this chap has a village. We will make his stay very difficult if he doesn't apologise. He amassed all that wealth from here with resources from Lambaland.”
And Lambas in chief Mushili's area asked Findlay to apologise over his hatred for them.
In a statement, Lamba organising committee vice chairperson Mandela Nkole stated that Findlay's hatred for Lambas was childish and retrogressive.
Nkole said Lambas voted for Findlay as Copperbelt MMD chairperson but they did not know his hidden hatred for them.
Nkole said Findlay's differences with Mpombo were personal.
“Findlay should apologise to Lambas or vacate from Lamba territory where he owns and runs Crown Breweries. He is selling his beer to the same Lambas he hates,” he said.
Nkole said tribal politics were dirty and should be discouraged.
Findlay last Wednesday openly revealed his hatred for late president Mwanawasa and the Lamba people in general to Kabimba.
This was after the trial of Kafulafuta MMD member of parliament Mpombo at Ndola magistrates' court.
Mpombo is alleged to have issued a cheque of K10 million to Findlay on an insufficiently funded account.
Mpombo narrated that he learnt of Findlay's outbursts through Kabimba who is part of his defence team, immediately after the court adjourned about midday.
“I am extremely flabbergasted and shocked by the scum of the politics Mr Findlay is trying to exhibit just to get at me for no apparent reason,” said Mpombo.
Labels: PETER MUMBA, TERRENCE FINDLAY, TRIBALISM, WYNTER KABIMBA
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‘Govt shouldn’t blame ERB for fuel shortage’
By Kabanda Chulu
Wed 04 Nov. 2009, 04:01 CAT
GOVERNMENT should not blame the Energy Regulation Board (ERB) for the countrywide fuel shortage because energy permanent secretary Peter Mumba had written to oil marketing companies (OMCs) assuring of a price increment when finished petroleum products are imported, The Post has been informed.
And sources at Ministry of Energy have dismissed chief government spokesperson Lieutenant General Ronnie Shikapwasha's assurances that fuel supply will normalise soon, saying the fuel stocks were too little to meet Zambia's daily consumption of about 700,000 litres for petrol and over 900,000 litres for diesel.
Despite Lt Gen Shikapwasha's assurances, several service stations in Lusaka do not have sufficient fuel and petrol attendants revealed that they were selling whatever stocks they received.
According to a letter dated October 19, 2009 and addressed to OMCs, Mumba stated that his ministry and that of finance and the ERB were working together on the figures for the duty waivers based on the agreed quantities of 11 million litres for petrol, 21 million litres of diesel and one million litres of kerosene that would be imported by the 17 OMCs registered in the country.
“As you will recall, it was agreed during our meeting at State House on 14th October 2009 that OMCs should also be allowed to import finished petroleum products during the period of the Indeni Refinery shutdown in order to supplement government imports, as agreed this letter serves to inform you that government will provide duty waivers to the OMCs on the imported diesel and unleaded petrol,” stated Mumba.
“As agreed at State House by yourselves that the reduction of duties only will still not make the importation of petrol economical, government is therefore working on a slight upward adjustment in the price of petrol and you will be advised in due course of details of the price increase.”
On Thursday, October 29, 2009, ERB acting executive director Lukonde Mfula announced that prices of petroleum products had been revised upwards with diesel increasing from K5,478 to K6,026 per litre while petrol prices had been pegged at K5,818 from K6,932 per litre.
Mfula stated that the current price review was necessitated by the importation of refined petroleum products during the on-going shutdown of Indeni Refinery as well as changes in international oil prices and also the inclusion of a K65.00 per litre cost line that has been introduced to finance cost of holding 15 days statutory operating stocks by all OMCs.
But ERB board chairman Sikota Wina immediately withdrew Mfula's statement and said there were more pressing matters concerning fuel supply stability in the country and fuel pricing was not one of them.
However, the sources said the ERB made a decision looking at Mumba's assurance to the OMCs and what would be the landed cost of the imported petroleum products.
The sources stated that the decision to import fuel products does not rest with government but with OMCs since it is purely a business decision.
“Government wants the situation to look as though ERB ignored or did not consult the board but this was not the case since the action taken by management at ERB was within its mandate. As a result of politics, Wina was forced to overrule management to show that there is no coordination and yet it was agreed by all stakeholders that importation of petrol will only make sense with price increment,” the sources said. “OMCs can import fuel products any time they want but since the price is regulated by government through ERB, then OMCs have to request for waivers or upward adjustment of prices in order to make some profit.”
Last Friday, finance minister Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane issued statutory instrument (SI) number 89 of 2009 to waive 25 per cent duty on importation of petroleum products but industry experts have argued that only diesel will be profitable for OMCs to import since its excise duty stands at seven per cent while that of petrol is pegged at 36 per cent hence there might be reluctance in importing the commodity.
The sources further stated that assurances by Lt Gen Shikapwasha were not true since national daily consumption outstrips what TAZAMA was holding in reserves.
Lt Gen Shikapwasha on Monday stated that TAZAMA had 1,705,000 litres of petrol against a daily consumption of 700,000 litres while for diesel, TAZAMA was holding 896, 000 litres which is far short of the over 900,000 litres national daily consumption.
On August 28, 2009, Dr Musokotwane issued SI number 55 of 2009 to allow the ministry of energy to import diesel duty free but since the ministry does not have capacity, it contracted, without tender procedures, Dalbit Petroleum of Kenya and IPG of Kuwait to import the commodity.
Labels: ERB, FUEL, PETER MUMBA
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‘Govt shouldn’t blame ERB for fuel shortage’
By Kabanda Chulu
Wed 04 Nov. 2009, 04:01 CAT
GOVERNMENT should not blame the Energy Regulation Board (ERB) for the countrywide fuel shortage because energy permanent secretary Peter Mumba had written to oil marketing companies (OMCs) assuring of a price increment when finished petroleum products are imported, The Post has been informed.
And sources at Ministry of Energy have dismissed chief government spokesperson Lieutenant General Ronnie Shikapwasha's assurances that fuel supply will normalise soon, saying the fuel stocks were too little to meet Zambia's daily consumption of about 700,000 litres for petrol and over 900,000 litres for diesel.
Despite Lt Gen Shikapwasha's assurances, several service stations in Lusaka do not have sufficient fuel and petrol attendants revealed that they were selling whatever stocks they received.
According to a letter dated October 19, 2009 and addressed to OMCs, Mumba stated that his ministry and that of finance and the ERB were working together on the figures for the duty waivers based on the agreed quantities of 11 million litres for petrol, 21 million litres of diesel and one million litres of kerosene that would be imported by the 17 OMCs registered in the country.
“As you will recall, it was agreed during our meeting at State House on 14th October 2009 that OMCs should also be allowed to import finished petroleum products during the period of the Indeni Refinery shutdown in order to supplement government imports, as agreed this letter serves to inform you that government will provide duty waivers to the OMCs on the imported diesel and unleaded petrol,” stated Mumba.
“As agreed at State House by yourselves that the reduction of duties only will still not make the importation of petrol economical, government is therefore working on a slight upward adjustment in the price of petrol and you will be advised in due course of details of the price increase.”
On Thursday, October 29, 2009, ERB acting executive director Lukonde Mfula announced that prices of petroleum products had been revised upwards with diesel increasing from K5,478 to K6,026 per litre while petrol prices had been pegged at K5,818 from K6,932 per litre.
Mfula stated that the current price review was necessitated by the importation of refined petroleum products during the on-going shutdown of Indeni Refinery as well as changes in international oil prices and also the inclusion of a K65.00 per litre cost line that has been introduced to finance cost of holding 15 days statutory operating stocks by all OMCs.
But ERB board chairman Sikota Wina immediately withdrew Mfula's statement and said there were more pressing matters concerning fuel supply stability in the country and fuel pricing was not one of them.
However, the sources said the ERB made a decision looking at Mumba's assurance to the OMCs and what would be the landed cost of the imported petroleum products.
The sources stated that the decision to import fuel products does not rest with government but with OMCs since it is purely a business decision.
“Government wants the situation to look as though ERB ignored or did not consult the board but this was not the case since the action taken by management at ERB was within its mandate. As a result of politics, Wina was forced to overrule management to show that there is no coordination and yet it was agreed by all stakeholders that importation of petrol will only make sense with price increment,” the sources said. “OMCs can import fuel products any time they want but since the price is regulated by government through ERB, then OMCs have to request for waivers or upward adjustment of prices in order to make some profit.”
Last Friday, finance minister Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane issued statutory instrument (SI) number 89 of 2009 to waive 25 per cent duty on importation of petroleum products but industry experts have argued that only diesel will be profitable for OMCs to import since its excise duty stands at seven per cent while that of petrol is pegged at 36 per cent hence there might be reluctance in importing the commodity.
The sources further stated that assurances by Lt Gen Shikapwasha were not true since national daily consumption outstrips what TAZAMA was holding in reserves.
Lt Gen Shikapwasha on Monday stated that TAZAMA had 1,705,000 litres of petrol against a daily consumption of 700,000 litres while for diesel, TAZAMA was holding 896, 000 litres which is far short of the over 900,000 litres national daily consumption.
On August 28, 2009, Dr Musokotwane issued SI number 55 of 2009 to allow the ministry of energy to import diesel duty free but since the ministry does not have capacity, it contracted, without tender procedures, Dalbit Petroleum of Kenya and IPG of Kuwait to import the commodity.
Labels: ERB, FUEL, OMCs, PETER MUMBA
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Total blames govt for its Indeni pull-out
By George Chellah, Chiwoyu Sinyangwe and Jane Mwakasungula
Thu 22 Oct. 2009, 04:01 CAT
TOTAL International is pulling out of Indeni Petroleum Refinery because of
the Zambian government's failure to contribute funds towards rehabilitation of the refinery to enable it meet the required minimum safety standards.
And the Engineering Institute of Zambia (EIZ) has noted that
it is not long before a minister and a permanent secretary of the Ministry of Energy is dismissed for mishandling the fuel crisis.
Well-placed sources at the Ministry of Energy and Water Development revealed to The Post that Total International opted to pull out because of the Zambian government's inertia in rehabilitating the refinery to the required minimum safety standards.
Both Total International and the Zambian government hold 50 per cent shares each in the 24,000-barrels-per-day sole refinery.
“Total International has many refineries world over and these several refineries all over the world have what they call minimum safety standards. This simply means that every refinery needs to meet these minimum safety standards to run efficiently and effectively. But Indeni does not qualify at the moment, it doesn't meet these minimum safety standards,” the source said.
“Total has been telling the Zambian government as a partner to inject in some funds towards the rehabilitation of the equipment so that the refinery can meet the minimum safety standards.
"The response from the Zambian government has been very negative so because of that, Total International have decided that they cannot continue running Indeni Oil Refinery because if the refinery caught fire or burns as a result of compromised safety standards, it will be Total International 's image that will be dented worldwide. Therefore, Total International has resolved to pull out purely on account of preserving their image particularly that the Zambian government is not willing to pump in money and rehabilitate Indeni to the requirement safety standards."
The sources disclosed that the Zambian government should not even pretend that they could manage to run the refinery without Total International.
"The government is bragging that they can run Indeni single-handedly, that's a lie! They are merely cheating themselves with such useless talk because they have failed to contribute the amount Total International was asking for to bring back Indeni to acceptable minimum safety standards, so what are they talking about? Total International was requesting for this money as a partner so that together they can rehabilitate Indeni oil refinery," the source said.
"In any case, how are they going to manage if they have failed to run Zamtel? They just want to be using Indeni for raising their campaign funds because even now, we are talking about the shutdown at Indeni but go to Indeni now and you will find that there are no spares for the plant to be rehabilitated during this shutdown. So it's practically impossible for them to even contemplate on effectively running Indeni single-handedly."
Speaker of the National Assembly Amusa Mwanamwambwa on Tuesday ordered energy minister Kenneth Konga to present a ministerial statement this week on the matter regarding Total International and the Zambian government. This was after Chipili PF member of parliament Davies Mwila raised a point of order.
Energy permanent secretary Peter Mumba was quoted in the state owned media as having said that the government was negotiating with Total International to buy the company's 50 per cent shares in Indeni Petroleum Refinery.
He said Total International's decision to sell its stake in Indeni would not affect the supply of fuel.
Mumba said the government had in the last few months engaged in talks with Total to buy the shares although the company had indicated that it had identified a willing buyer of its shares.
And EIZ president Henry Musonda said continued assurances by Konga that the government was in charge did not amount to anything as queues at most service stations had continued.
“That is why EIZ cannot accept the reasons given by the minister on the cause of fuel shortage… It is still fresh in our minds not long ago when a minister and a permanent secretary were dismissed for mishandling the fuel crisis,” Musonda said.
“This is a cause to worry that so many man hours are being lost in queues for petrol. In engineering there is always a schedule of planned maintenance which to every person who drives a car, you will know when you carry routine everyday checks, planned service, major service to replace worn out parts at certain interval like fan belts and timing chains.”
Musonda said the current petrol crisis was an indication that the government had not taken care of the supply chain.
“There is something really wrong which has not been addressed by our government people. If you happen to be in the city of Lusaka, there has been a proliferation of fuel stations in almost all areas,” said Musonda.
“This has seemed a good sign of economic growth and private sector investment and job creation. To add to this there has been an increase in population of motor cars on our roads from the general public and government alike. The increased traffic
congestions is also adding to increasing fuel consumption.”
And key OMCs are still receiving erratic supply of petrol owing to the uncoordinated and erratic inflows of petrol from Dalbit Petroleum Limited and Independent Petroleum Group of Kuwait.
But most key OMCs were cagey and refused to comment on the crisis, referring all queries to the energy ministry.
BP Zambia acting general manager Kenny Muhanga said the country's largest OMC had been receiving the government-sourced petrol but demand was still insatiable.
Muhanga also confirmed that BP Zambia was currently not importing any fuel owing to the absence of the Statutory Instrument (SI) suspending the 25 per cent import duty.
“…The arrangements are still being worked out by the government,” Muhanga said.
Asked whether quick issuance of the SI would have helped BP Zambia to react faster to the crisis, Muhanga refused to comment on the matter and referred all queries to Konga.
Kobil public relations manager Nayoto Kaputa declined to comment on the matter but admitted the OMCs had not had enough petrol stocks.
Repeated efforts to get comment from Konga and Mumba proved futile at press time as their mobile phones went unanswered.
Meanwhile, Council of Churches in Zambia (CCZ) general secretary Reverend Suzanne Matale said there was need for the government to establish the truth about the fuel crisis to avoid instability in the country.
“The truth should be established by government. It owes Zambians the truth. Government should tell the poor Zambians the truth about how long this drama will take. Zambians should not be taken for granted but rather respected as human beings like anybody else.
“This is our country and we deserve to know the truth because it is every Zambian's right,” said Rev Matale.
“Fuel is an important ingredient to any economy. It is the driving engine of any economy. How then does government expect to boost the economy when there is a shortage of man-power and fuel to drive the act?”
Yesterday, Konga was quoted by the Times of Zambia as having said that fuel tankers had arrived in the country but the shortage has persisted in most parts of the country.
Prior to the shortage of petrol, Mumba also assured the nation that the country had sufficient stocks and added that he would resign from his position in the event that the country faced a shortage of the commodity.
In Siavonga Township, residents are crossing to the neighbouring town of Zimbabwe to buy fuel due to the non-availability of the commodity in the area.
A check revealed that motorists were buying a litre of petrol at US $1.23 while that of diesel was pegged at 95 US cents to US $1 .
Labels: CORRUPTION, EIZ, FUEL, INDENI, KENNETH KONGA, PARASTATALS, PETER MUMBA, SUZANNE MATALE
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Don’t blame anyone over fuel shortage, Banda tells OMCs
Written by George Chellah, Chiwoyu Sinyangwe, Mutuna Chanda and Abigail Chaponda
Monday, October 19, 2009 7:14:41 AM
PRESIDENT Rupiah Banda has told oil marketing companies (OMCs) and other stakeholders in the energy sector not to blame anyone over the current shortage of fuel in the country.
And key OMCs have expressed ignorance of the suspension of the 25 per cent import duty on finished petroleum products as announced by energy minister Kenneth Konga on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the shortage of petrol has spread to almost all Copperbelt towns, thereby paralysing some economic activities.
Well-placed sources yesterday disclosed that President Banda last week held a meeting with OMCs at State House over the current fuel shortages.
“The meeting was attended by the President himself, officials from the Ministry of Energy, the Energy Regulation Board (ERB) and OMCs. Although, President Banda only attended the meeting for about an hour,” the source said.
“The President told the meeting that people should not focus on finger-pointing but work together towards resolving the problem. He also said he was disappointed that the fuel situation had degenerated into the current situation. The President said he thought they were on top of things.”
The sources said President Banda pledged to the OMCs that the government would assist them to bring in petroleum products.
“This assistance could only have been through a duty waiver on imported products through the issuance of a Statutory Instrument [SI]. But by Saturday evening the SI had not been issued and signed by the government despite the President's assurances that he was going to assist the OMCs to bring fuel,” the source said.
“As things stand now, without the SI the OMCs cannot start importing fuel despite the government's assurance because of the Zambia Revenue Authority's duty implications at the border.”
And both BP Zambia Plc and Total expressed ignorance of the issuance of Statutory Instrument to suspend the 25 per cent import duty on finished petroleum products as claimed by Konga on Saturday.
Konga on Saturday morning told Reuters that the government had zero-rated the importation of fuel to enable the OMCs react to the crisis which threatened to halt the economic wheels of the country.
BP Zambia acting general manager Kenny Muhanga said the country's biggest OMC by market share had not commissioned the imports owing to lack of official communication from the Ministry of Energy and Water Development.
“We have not received official communication yet. Probably, we might get it by tomorrow if it is there,” Muhanga said.
“All we can say is that we are supposed to be trading, that is our main business and that is why we are there. So, if the product is not available, naturally, it adversely affects our operations and we are hopeful that things will actually normalise.”
He said BP Zambia would only consider importing petroleum products upon seeing the SI effecting the suspension of import duty.
“Until, we see what is in the communication, it very difficult to make any position. We just need to assess what is in that communication then based on that a decision will have to be made on the way forward,” he said.
Muhanga said the fuel crisis had negatively impacted on the operations of the company. Total Zambia managing director Alexis Vovk also expressed ignorance on the SI. Vovk refused to comment on the matter further, saying he does not speak to journalists on the phone.
“I have no comment to make because I was not aware directly of this statement. I have to check with the ministry first,” Vovk said.
Asked if Total had been officially communicated to, Vovk said: “Not as far as I know, I left the office at 12 yesterday [Saturday], so maybe it arrived late but thank you for the information.”
Meanwhile, energy permanent secretary Peter Mumba disclosed that Kenyan-based Dalbit Petroleum Limited and Independent Petroleum Group (IPG) of Kuwait were yesterday expected to pump into the country 1.5 million litres of petrol and in excess of two million litres of diesel.
“Today [yesterday] we are expecting trucks to hit the country both from Dar es Salaam and Beira port in Mozambique, so be on the lookout for the trucks by late this afternoon,” Mumba said.
“The quantity is about 1.5 million litres of petrol and in excess of two million diesel and once they arrive today, it will be on daily basis. Independent Petroleum Group (IPG) and Dalbit like the minister mentioned in Parliament.”
Asked whether the fuel crisis would end by today given the expected stocks yesterday, Mumba said: “I will not say with 100 per cent. Until we see the trucks, then I can say because sometimes, when the trucks arrive we may perhaps receive half of the trucks while other trucks will still be on the way but on the Zambian side. So, to say that tomorrow, it will normalise until I see the trucks. But certainly, we have some trucks which have crossed Nakonde and we are expecting more trucks to cross Chirundu [border post].”
Mumba said the government last week ordered OMCs to start importing fuel to avert the crisis.
“We had a meeting with OMCs on Wednesday last week where we agreed that the OMCs should import 21 million litres of diesel and 11 million of petrol,” said Mumba. “So, they should be swinging into action to begin the imports. Others have probably already placed orders because the meeting with them conveyed that decision.”
But an energy expert warned that OMCs could be forced to increase the price of fuel by 27 per cent to break even in the event that they imported fuel without the government signing the Statutory Instrument for the waiver on import duty.
“Dalbit is enjoying duty-free imports although their capacity is limited, only supplying few trucks to Indeni. Yesterday [Saturday] nothing was released causing further strain on local supplies, as Dalbit trucks had not arrived,” said the source who preferred anonymity. “This problem could have been avoided and worse still government is not helping matters. If they were serious the SI would have been signed immediately as the fuel situation is now getting into a crisis situation.
“The OMCs are justified in not importing as they will just treat the government assurance as speculation because they have not seen any SI If they import without the duty waiver it means that they may be forced to increase the fuel price by at least 27 per cent to break even.”
Dalbit Petroleum Limited is a privately-owned company incorporated under the Companies Act Cap 486 of the Laws of Kenya.
The Company is licensed to procure and market petroleum products in the domestic Kenyan market and for export to the neighbouring Great Lakes Region in Africa.
Two evaluation reports on the tender for the supply and delivery of diesel to Zambia revealed serious weaknesses for potential suppliers - Dalbit Petroleum Limited and Energy Trading Group - whom the Ministry of Energy is trying to use to bring the commodity.
The records have revealed that Dalbit Petroleum Limited of Kenya participated in the tendering process in Zambia, although it was unsuccessful.
According to the evaluation and re-evaluation reports obtained by The Post, during the tendering process Energy Trading Group presented a trading license valid up to July 2007 and their profile did not indicate how much volume they were able to supply.
The report revealed that despite Dalbit Petroleum Limited having more than five years experience in the supply and delivery of petroleum products, most of its supply and delivery was for relatively small quantities.
It revealed that Dalbit Petroleum did not indicate ability to mobilise rail tank wagons and did not clearly outline the key roles for the staff as requested in the bidding document.
Despite these weaknesses, the Ministry of Energy Tender Committee went ahead to recommend to the Zambia National Tender Board (ZNTB) to grant them authority to enter into negotiations with Energy Trading Group and Dalbit Petroleum Limited for each company to supply 7,500 cubic metres of diesel to Zambia.
According to the first evaluation report, in the initial bidding process, there were seven bidders that included Sabela Energy, Oryx Oil & Gas S.A, Petroneft, Independent Petroleum Group (IPG), Dalbit Petroleum Limited, Trafigura Beheer BV and Energy Trading Group.
However, Sabela Energy and Trafigura Beheer BV were eliminated at the preliminary evaluation stage because they were found to be non-responsive due to their failure to submit either audited financial statements or bank statements for the past three years and the required bid security of US $1 million [about K5 billion].
During technical evaluation part one stage, IPG got 94.73 points, Oryx Oil and Gas S.A got 80.67 points, Energy Trading got 77.17 points, Petroneft got 67.12 points while Dalbit Petroleum was last with 65.24 points.
The report, therefore, revealed that Dalbit Petroleum was eliminated because it had failed to meet the 70 points cut-off line.
Meanwhile, signs of Copperbelt towns being affected by the current petrol shortage experienced in the past week in Lusaka, parts of Eastern and Southern provinces emerged on Friday evening with erratic supply mainly in Kitwe.
On Friday evening, only Engen filling station in Kitwe at the corner of Independence and Freedom Avenues, BP on President's Avenue and Total on Oxford Street had petrol while the others turned motorists away.
Late Saturday afternoon, only BP filling station on Central Street had petrol while the others had run dry.
Yesterday, many vehicles had queued on Oxford Street waiting to draw petrol at Total while queues had formed at other filling stations such as BP in Buchi.
One of the motorists found waiting to draw petrol at Total on Oxford Street, Patson Mambwe, complained that the fuel shortage was a big inconvenience because he was supposed to have been at his office in Ndola at 07:00 hours but was on a queue at the service station by 11:15 hours.
He said the government should have immediately waived the 25 per cent import duty on petrol to allow OMCs to import fuel.
Intermittent supplies of petrol were experienced in Chingola on Friday and the commodity ran out in almost all the five filling stations in the town by Saturday while Chililabombwe was completely dry.
On Saturday, all the filling stations in Ndola had run out of petrol and posters at many of them had been stuck notifying motorists of the shortage.
In Mufulira, only one filling station had petrol on Saturday while the other had run out, forcing motorists to queue for the commodity.
By yesterday, the situation had seemingly stabilised.
UNIP Copperbelt Province chairman Isa Zgambo challenged President Banda to explain what was going on regarding the fuel supply situation.
Zgambo said UNIP which had turned 50 years had built industries such as Indeni Oil Refinery and Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia (NCZ) but that the MMD administration had failed to run the institutions.
Labels: FUEL, OMCs, PETER MUMBA, RUPIAH BANDA, SHORTAGES
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Indeni fuel stock still desperate
Written by George Chellah
Friday, June 12, 2009 8:25:23 PM
THE current fuel stocks at Indeni Oil Refinery still remain desperate, Ministry of Energy sources have disclosed. And the sources said energy permanent secretary Peter Mumba was being economical with the truth on the fuel stocks in the country. The sources on Friday revealed that the situation at Indeni has not improved in a way.
"You know, hearing the permanent secretary speak the other day was quite laughable. We all know at the ministry that the situation at Indeni currently is very different from the picture Mr. Mumba was painting," the sources said.
"Mr. Mumba was even saying that he would resign if there is a fuel shortage knowing very well that in between they can import fuel to mitigate the looming crisis."
The sources revealed that officials from Indeni have been meeting Ministry of Energy officials in Lusaka to try and find the way forward on the matter.
"They are trying to convince the Indeni officials to assist them import fuel. Mr. Mumba knows the truth, which is that the current stocks are not sufficient. We will only mitigate the situation if they import. In the worst case scenario they just want to import fuel quietly so that they convince the public that they have enough stocks. When in actual sense the situation is that the stocks have depleted at Indeni," the sources explained.
"Anyway the problem is the permanent secretary is only told what to say. If you want go to Indeni today and you will find those trucks from Kenya that come to load Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) marooned. If they have enough like Mr. Mumba is claiming why don't they load those trucks and clear them?"
The sources further revealed that following Mumba's statement, a management meeting was convened on Thursday in the technical conference room at Indeni.
"We are told at the ministry that the management at Indeni met to discuss this same matter and we are told that the same meeting was chaired by the operations manager. They were trying to come up with a position on how to handle possible queries from the media particularly The Post if at all you asked them on what Mr. Mumba had said in comparison to what was written earlier by your newspaper," the sources said.
"And they resolved that since the boss (Mr. Mumba) was being economical with the truth, the best way is to refer any queries back to us at the Ministry of Energy or Tazama so that they neither lie nor tell the truth. Indeni has pushed it back to us to be answering all questions pertaining to what is going on."
And when contacted on the fuel stocks situation at the refinery, Indeni public relations officer Mwila Nkonge referred all queries to the Tanzania Zambia Mafuta (TAZAMA) pipelines managing director Largeman Muzelenga.
"I can't give you anything on that, you can contact Tazama," Nkonge said.
But Muzelenga said Mumba's statement was the correct position.
"The PS issued a statement and that's the correct data. I can confirm that we gave the PS that data," he said.
Asked why there were contradictions in the stocks given by the permanent secretary and energy minister Kenneth Konga since Tazama was the source of the data, Muzelenga responded: "Well, I don't know which contradictions because we gave the information which was correct data."
When reminded that the stocks Konga gave earlier where different from the ones Mumba announced, Muzelenga said he could not comment.
"I just came in the office yesterday. I was not around I was in Dar-es-salaam. I only came on Wednesday. I am not aware of the other statement... I am not aware of the minister's statement myself."
On Wednesday, Mumba pledged to resign if the current delayed docking of the 90,000 metric tonnes of feedstock from Independent Petroleum Group (IPG) of Kuwait leads to a fuel shortage in the country.
He said the country had enough fuel stocks to last up to about the first week of July, 12 days after the expected time of the docking of the current consignment -the eighth in a row of 16 cargoes to be delivered under the two-year
"As of this morning, the correct fuel stock position in the country according to the amount of finished products that Tazama has, there is enough Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) to last up to 26th June, 2009; unleaded petrol to last up to 4th July, 2009; kerosene to last up to 5th August, 2009 and Jet A1 up to 2nd July, 2009," Mumba explained. "As regards diesel, we have enough to last 8th July, 2009 and heavy fuel oil (HFO) to last up to 13th August, 2009."
Mumba's figures were however contrary to last week's statement by energy minister Kenneth Konga when he confirmed the shutdown at Indeni Oil Refinery owing to insufficient crude stocks needed for processing.
Konga said it was true that the crude oil that the country were expecting to dock in Dar-es-Salaam last week had delayed, but the ship was expected to dock between June 7 and 11.
Konga disclosed that the country had 62 days' stock of petrol, 33 days of diesel and kerosene stocks to last 67 days, while A1 jet fuel would suffice for the next 45 days.
Labels: FUEL, INDENI, MWILA NKONGA, PETER MUMBA
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I’ll resign if there’s fuel shortage, says Mumba
Written by Chiwoyu Sinyangwe
Thursday, June 11, 2009 12:39:24 PM
MINISTRY of Energy permanent secretary Peter Mumba yesterday pledged to resign if the current delayed docking of the 90,000 metric tonnes of feedstock from Independent Petroleum Group (IPG) of Kuwait leads to a fuel shortage in the country. And Mumba said the next consignment of feedstock was expected to dock at the port in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania on Monday next week after bad weather at sea delayed its importation from Kuwait.
Addressing journalists, Mumba said if indeed there were a looming fuel shortage in the country, he would have been honest enough to inform the nation on the correct status quo.
"If we are going to have shortage before this [consignment of feedstock arrives], then I will be the first one to go to the President and tell him that 'sir, I am not fit to be PS [permanent secretary]'," Mumba said.
He said the country would not experience a fuel shortage despite the delayed docking of the 90,000 metric tonne tanker at Dar-es-Salaam port, which was initially expected to dock on June 15, 2009.
Mumba said the country had enough fuel stocks to last up to about the first week of July, 12 days after the expected time of the docking of the current consignment -the eighth in a row of 16 cargoes to be delivered under the two-year contract in which IPG would deliver 1,440,000 metric tonnes of crude oil.
"As of this morning [yesterday], the correct fuel stock position in the country according to the amount of finished products that Tazama [Tanzania Zambia Mafuta Pipeline] has, there is enough Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) to last up to 26th June, 2009; unleaded petrol to last up to 4th July, 2009; kerosene to last up to 5th August, 2009 and Jet A1 up to 2nd July, 2009," Mumba explained.
"As regards diesel, we have enough to last 8th July, 2009 and heavy fuel oil (HFO) to last up to 13th August, 2009."
Mumba denied that the government had failed to pay for the current consignment resulting in it being diverted to India, saying PTA Bank had committed to fund the procurement on behalf of the government.
"Once a ship is ordered, the components of the feedstock loaded are specific to the market requirements for Zambia and therefore it is not possible for the ship to be diverted by the supplier to any other destination as the crude will not meet the requirements of that country," Mumba said.
The docking of the feedstock tanker next week was also confirmed by IPG in an e-mail sent to director of Energy Oscar Kalumiana yesterday morning at 10:02 hours, which Mumba availed to journalists.
"Dear Oscar, Vessel is facing very rough sea due to SW Monsoon with head winds and swell, due above, ETA is revised to 18th June am. Sorry for the inconvenience," stated IPG manager for supply and operations Capt SK Basal in an e-mail.
Mumba's figures were however contrary to last week's statement by energy minister Kenneth Konga when he confirmed the shutdown at Indeni Oil Refinery owing to insufficient crude stocks needed for processing.
Konga said it was true that the crude oil that the country were expecting to dock in Dar-es-Salaam last week had delayed, but the ship was expected to dock between June 7 and 11.
Konga disclosed that the country had 62 days' stock of petrol, 33 days of diesel and kerosene stocks to last 67 days, while A1 jet fuel would suffice for the next 45 days.
Mumba said the recent closure of Indeni had helped in conducting some routine maintenance at the country's sole oil refinery and enabled Tazama repair about a five-kilometre stretch of the pipeline, which needed attention.
And in a letter addressed to Post managing editor Amos Malupenga, Mumba expressed shock that The Post reported the story without verifying with the Ministry of Energy.
"If you had done this, this unfortunate and misleading story would not have been printed by you," Mumba stated. "...All formalities for offloading of the ship have been made with Tanzanian authorities. IPG would not be bringing the ship if GRZ has failed to pay for it. With the above information, we are extremely shocked that The Post can approach this issue of national importance in such a casual manner."
Mumba wondered what could have motivated The Post to deliberately mislead the public.
"We therefore request you to correct your misleading story. Further, you should in future verify the stories you intend to print to avoid causing unnecessarily alarm. While, I agree that the press is free to report on anything, it is our considered view that this type of reporting is unacceptable as it does not contribute to the building of our young and prosperous society," stated Mumba.
On Tuesday, sources told The Post that Indeni Oil Refinery shut down because the Zambian government had no money to procure crude oil and the Ndola-based refinery only had petrol and diesel to last for nine and eight days respectively.
Labels: INDEPENDENT PETROLEUM GROUP, PETER MUMBA
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Govt owes Zesco $18 million
Government owes ZESCO US$18 million in unpaid electricity bills, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Energy Peter Mumba disclosed on Monday. Mumba disclosed this to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).
He told the committee that ZESCO was in a poor financial position and one of the reasons for this was the failure by its customers to settle their electricity bills on time. He said the biggest culprit is the government through its various departments.
He said the various government departments collectively owed ZESCO the US$18 million accrued over a period of time.
PAC said it was unacceptable for government to be one of the biggest debtors to ZESCO and wondered how this money would be collected.
The committee, however, disagreed with the Permanent Secretary’s assertions that one way to improve the company’s balance sheets is by adjusting its electricity tariffs upwards.
Labels: PAC, PARASTATALS, PETER MUMBA, ZESCO
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Indeni reserves fuel for local consumption
By Times Reporter
INDENI Petroleum Refinery will not export any fuel due to increased local demand following the commissioning of Lumwana Mine and opening of new farm blocs, Energy Permanent Secretary, Peter Mumba (right) has said.
Mr Mumba said in Lusaka yesterday that the Government had abandoned earlier plans to export fuel to neighbouring countries after local consumption significantly shot up in the last few weeks with the commissioning of Lumwana Mine.
“We are happy that the economy is slowly picking up and this can be seen from the increased consumption level of fuel which has been attributed to mining activities at Lumwana Mine and the opening of new farming blocs,” Mr Mumba said.
Copper production at Lumwana Mine, whose current diesel consumption Mr Mumba did not state, is expected to reach 170,000 tonnes this year.
He said the Government had earlier intended to export diesel to neighbouring countries after national consumption fell by about 40 per cent following the temporary closure of some mines.
Indeni is the main source of diesel for parts of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Zimbabwe but lacks storage facilities.
The Government clinched a deal to export 10 million litres of diesel to the DRC but this had been reduced following the scaling down of mining operations in that country.
Mr Mumba said the Government was happy that the consumption of fuel, especially diesel, had increased and, given the current scenario, it was no longer necessary to export any fuel.
He said that recently, the fuel storage facility at Tazama in Ndola was filled up to capacity and the Government initiated negotiations to export so as to create space.
Mr Mumba assured that the Government would continue to ensure that the country had enough fuel to avoid any disruption of economic programmes currently going on in the country.
He commended the Tanzanian government for sourcing US$50 million towards the construction of a multi facility single-point mooring (SPM) used by Zambia to offload crude oil.
He said he was happy that the new facility would handle both crude and finished products once completed.
Works for the construction of the offloading bay with a capacity of 90,000 tonnes are expected to start next month.
Feasibility studies have already been conducted
Once the works begin, Zambia will continue to use the old SPM to offload the crude oil into the Zambian storage facilities.
Labels: FUEL, INDENI, PETER MUMBA
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Exchange rate will determine fuel prices, observes Mumba
Written by Chiwoyu Sinyangwe
Wednesday, December 03, 2008 9:23:41 AM
THE kwacha’s depreciation against major convertible currencies will prevent local consumers from feeling the impact of declining international prices of oil, UK based economist
Chola Mukanga has observed.
And energy permanent secretary Peter Mumba has observed that the exchange rate would determine the extent of reduction in local pump prices of fuel in line with the global trends.
In an interview, Mukanga said the Energy Regulation Board (ERB) needs to have an expanded interaction with the exchange rate.
“There is of course the little problem of the kwacha which is depreciating significantly, and if that continues, the Zambian consumer may not see the gain in lower prices of oil prices on the international market,” Mukanga said.
The kwacha on Monday modestly depreciated to close trading at K4,490 and K4,540 per US dollar owing to mismatched dollar supply and demand.
Mukanga also said there was need to review the cost impact of Indeni Petroleum Refinery to determine its contribution to the final pump price under the cost- plus model the country was currently using.
He further supported a recent observation by the ERB that the local price of fuel lagged behind the international fuel prices due to the cost plus model currently being implemented.
“The ERB is correct with regards to the lag in oil imports and their cost-plus model which I gather is now under review because it does not make sense that we have such high costs of processing crude oil compared to all of our neighbours,” said Mukanga who is also an advisor to UK government on aviation policies.
And in a statement, Mumba stated that while the cost-plus regime ensures cost recovery, it was slow to respond to the price variations as the new prices were effected depending on the cost of each cargo brought into the country.
“The cargo that has been purchased in November was at an even lower cost of US $53 million and this will be processed as from the second week of December this year. This cargo will result in a reduction of fuel prices this month,” stated Mumba. “The extent of the price reduction will depend on the exchange rate. The actual reduction will be determined by the ERB.”
Labels: CHOLA MUKANGA, FUEL, KWACHA, PETER MUMBA
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Mumba urges Task Force, ACC to expedite Alstom SA contract probe
Written by Chiwoyu Sinyangwe
ENERGY permanent secretary Peter Mumba yesterday asked the Task Force on Corruption and ACC to expedite investigations into suspected corruption in the award of a contract to Alstom SA by Zesco Limited.
And Mumba said his complaints last March about the slow pace at which Alstom SA was carrying out rehabilitation works at Kariba North Bank power station was not done out of suspicion but was a genuine concern.
In an interview, Mumba said there was need to ensure that all cases that involved alleged corrupt tendencies were pursued to the bottom because it was difficult to ascertain to what extent they negatively affected the country.
Mumba, however, refused to comment further on the matter saying the ministry was waiting to get the outcome of the investigations from the Task Force on Corruption and ACC.
“Yes I complained when we went to Siavonga about the slow pace and the company involved was Alstom but my complaint was not that I was suspecting anything but just because of the reports I was getting,” Mumba said. “But of course Zesco came to their defence and brought the issue of funding and you remember we pushed government to make available US $50 million which Zesco said was a shortfall. For now, we just need to encourage the relevant investigating wings to speed up their work so that we get to the bottom of the problem.”
Mumba last week wrote to the two anti-graft institutions, urging them to investigate Alstom’s reported investigation for fraud by the Swiss Criminal Court for alleged involvement in fraud after it was reported in The Post.
And last Saturday, Task Force on Corruption executive chairman Maxwell Nkole confirmed that a docket had been opened following the complaint from the permanent secretary (Mumba).
“We are working with our sister departments as well as foreign counterparts and we will only comment after preliminaries are established,” said Nkole.
Alstom SA is alleged to have paid US $1 million in bribes to a Zambian official and that between January 2001 and April 2003, the French engineering company is suspected to have given bribes of around one million euros (about US $1. 25 million), sent via different offshore companies to an official in Zambia.
Labels: ACC, ALSTROM SA, PETER MUMBA, TASK FORCE, ZESCO
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Sinazongwe to have thermal power
October 23, 2008
Ministry of Energy and Water Development Permanent Secretary (PS), Peter Mumba, has disclosed that three companies have been short listed to bid for investment in thermal power in Sinazongwe district. Mr. Mumba said this when he paid a courtesy call on Sinazongwe District Commissioner, (DC) Mungoni Simulilika today.
Mr Mumba said that the government wants to find a quick solution to power deficit the country was experiencing through investment in thermal power.
The PS, who was on tour of water projects and to establish the district which would be producing thermal power using coal, said the Ministry of Mines and the Zambia Consolidate Cooper Mine (ZCCM) Investment Holding were spearheading the project.
He said the company to be chosen after the bids would produce 540 mega watts of power to caution the deficit the country was experiencing.
Mr. Mumba said government was looking for a company that was already experienced in coal mining and producing thermal power.
And Sinzongwe DC,Mungoni Simulilika, said the setting up of a thermal power station would help to boost the economy in the district.
Mr. Simulilika noted that the department of Water Affairs was important to the development of the district which is a drought prone area.
ZANIS/ENDS/TN/EB
Labels: PETER MUMBA, SINAZONGWE, SOLAR THERMAL
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Expert advises govt over revenue from fuel taxes
By Joan Chirwa and Fridah Zinyama
Friday June 13, 2008 [04:00]
GOVERNMENT can still accumulate a reasonable amount of revenue from fuel taxes on account of increasing consumption levels instead of removing subsidies, energy expert Andrew Kamanga has said. But energy permanent secretary Peter Mumba said the government's decision to remove fuel subsidies still holds, only hinting that the ministry would propose a review of the current tax structure for fuel to make it more responsive to consumer needs.
Reacting to the government's decision to phase out fuel subsidies by the end of this month, Kamanga said the current fuel taxes were quite high to guarantee a reasonable revenue collection by government.
"At the beginning of the current budget year, government made pronouncements to collect a fixed amount from fuel levy," Kamanga said. "But if they government are now going to let prices go up, which the ERB will be doing in view of the removal of a subsidy on fuel, then government will collect even more from consumers in form of fuel levies."
Kamanga said Zambia's consumption levels for fuel had been increasing owing to massive investments placed in key economic sectors such as mining, hence raising revenue collected by the government.
"Government should therefore consider reducing taxes on fuel so that its decision to stop subsidising fuel does not have any effect on the economy," said Kamanga.
According to data compiled by Energy Regulation Board (ERB), diesel consumption in August last year was recorded at 44.3 million litres, from about 30.9 million litres consumed in January the same year.
A total of 14.1 million litres of petrol were consumed in August last year, with a very minimal increase from the January figure.
And on every litre of fuel, an average of 55 per cent of the cost goes towards taxes. For example, on every litre of petrol, a consumer contributes 16 per cent as value added tax (VAT), excise duty at 45 per cent, road levy at 15 per cent and import duty charged at five per cent. For diesel, the only difference is the excise duty, which is charged at 15 per cent, explaining the slightly lower pump price of the commodity at service stations.
And Mumba said the government would not change its position to stop subsidising fuel as it had become unsustainable.
Mumba however said the government would look at best ways of approaching the issue, such as revising the tax structure for fuel.
"It is not a secret that once the subsidies are completely removed, the pump price for fuel will go up," Mumba said. "I think we also need to look at the current tax structure for fuel."
Mumba further said the government was considering holding discussions with Independent Petroleum Group of Kuwait - the appointed supplier of crude oil - to establish ways of mitigating increasing prices of oil on the international market as the current pricing arrangement with the contractor was not fixed.
Mumba said the government has submitted its recommendations to Zambia National Tender Board (ZNTB) on the bank, which is supposed to finance the crude oil from IPG.
He said four institutions had expressed interest in bidding for the financing of crude oil and that ZNTB would announce the preferred bank by next week.
"The four institutions which bid to finance the crude oil are Zanaco, Citibank, PTA and Finance bank," he said. "We are hopeful that the financial institution chosen will not take time to finish negotiations."
Mumba hoped that the bank that would clinch the deal would hasten the negotiation process unlike the other negotiations that had collapsed.
And during the launch of the energy conservation week under the theme 'Energy Efficiency- Achieving sustainability together' which will be commemorated from June 12 to 14, Mumba said it was important for citizens to efficiently use electricity so that the country does not suffer from any further shortages which could affect the economy negatively.
Labels: ANDREW KAMANGA, PETER MUMBA, TAXATION
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Use of Uranium for Zambia's energy not viable, says Mumba
By Joan Chirwa
Tuesday May 20, 2008 [04:00]
THE use of uranium to generate power is currently not a viable option for Zambia despite the country’s electricity deficit, energy permanent secretary Peter Mumba has said. In an interview, Mumba said the discovery of uranium deposits in Zambia was not a guarantee for the product’s use to generate power.
“As much as we have the uranium in the country, government does not have immediate plans to use this resource for the generation of electricity,” Mumba said. “There are regulations that need to be put in place first before we can fully exploit uranium for a number of uses. For the time being, it is not a viable option.”
Mumba said Zambia needed to be extremely cautious in the use of uranium resulting from the product’s nature.
“Zambia needs to exercise extra caution in the use of uranium. We are not likely to use uranium in Zambia to power electricity plants in the near future because of security reasons. It is a good resource, but we cannot rush into exploiting it for power generation,” said Mumba.
According to energy experts, it is estimated that about 200 tonnes of Uranium Oxide are required to produce 1,000 megawatts of electricity for one year.
The government recently announced that it would soon start issuing mining licences for uranium this June once the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) approves Zambia's new regulations on the mineral.
Mines minister Dr Kalombo Mwansa said the law to cover for the mining, storage and transportation of uranium would be ready by June this year, before any of the companies exploring for the energy mineral could reach production stage.
Labels: ENERGY, PETER MUMBA, URANIUM
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Zambia lacks strategic reserves storage facilities, says Mumba
By Kabanda Chulu
Saturday May 10, 2008 [04:01]
ZAMBIA has no storage facilities to hold strategic petroleum reserves, Ministry of Energy permanent secretary Peter Mumba has said. Mumba said under the strategic petroleum reserves programme, the government had prioritised the storing of finished petroleum products and not crude oil. He explained that in case of a breakdown of the refinery, finished petroleum products could be readily used unlike crude oil which needed to be processed.
“Government is therefore planning to ensure sufficient storage capacity space available to hold 30 days of processed fuel products but currently there is no storage capacity to hold strategic petroleum reserves,” said Mumba.
“For this reason, tanks at Ndola Fuel Terminal have to be repaired after which they will be able to hold 10 days of diesel and 15 days of petrol strategic stock and so far TAZAMA is rehabilitating the 40,000 metric tonnes tank at Bwana Mkubwa, whose works will be completed in 2009.”
And international oil prices have reached a record high of US $ 122 per barrel with analysts citing supply disruptions in Nigeria, tensions in Iran and the weakness of the US dollar as some of the causes.
Labels: FUEL, PETER MUMBA, STORAGE
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Govt considers alternative energy sources
By Joan Chirwa
Saturday April 26, 2008 [04:00]
GOVERNMENT is seriously considering alternative sources of energy to enhance security of supply in the country, energy and water development permanent secretary Peter Mumba has said. And Mumba said the government would soon consider rehabilitating fuel storage facilities dotted across the country as the private sector was not keen to develop the facilities.
Appearing before a parliamentary committee on energy on Thursday, Mumba said the high coal deposits present in Maamba presented Zambia with a good opportunity to generate hundreds of mega watts of power using coal.
Mumba said Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines Investment Holdings (ZCCM-IH) has so far applied for consideration to develop a coal powered electricity plant in Maamba to produce around 300 mega watts of power to supplement Zesco’s generation capacity of around 1,600 mega watts.
“Energy mix is crucial for security of supply,” Mumba said. “Alternative sources of energy are being considered to enhance security of supply. Zambia has millions of tonnes of coal reserves which can be utilised to generate electricity. Coal powered electricity generation in Zambia can be one of the reliable sources of power.”
Israel is currently generating around 14,000 mega watts of power using imported coal, while countries like Zambia, with enormous coal deposits have not developed a single coal-powered electricity generation plant.
And Mumba said the government has been trying to involve the private sector in the operation of fuel storage facilities around the country.
“The idea is to rehabilitate the storage facilities for fuel not just here in Lusaka but everywhere else in the country. One of them is located on Mungwi Road in Lusaka and it has not been used for a very long time,” Mumba said.
“We tried to invite the private sector to participate in the running of these facilities but the response was not good so government has to move on. I will soon be going round to check these facilities and that will give the ministry an idea of how much is needed to bring the infrastructure back to their original state.”
Labels: BIOFUELS, PETER MUMBA
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Govt blames World Bank for energy situation
By Chiwoyu Sinyangwe in Siavonga
Monday March 10, 2008 [03:00]
ENERGY Permanent Secretary Peter Mumba has said that
the World Bank should bear the consequences of having misled the country on the energy situation. And parliamentary select committee on energy chairperson Garry Nkombo has urged Zesco Limited not to look at raising tariffs as the only option to improve its operations.
Mumba castigated World Bank-Zambia communications manager Jumbe Ngoma for saying that the current electricity crisis in the country was due to lack planning. He said that the World Bank was pushing government on the agenda of privatising Zesco without making wide consultations.
“World Bank is a culprit in the problem of electricity shortage that we’re facing today,” Mumba said.
“World Bank should sincerely admit that its prescription for attracting private sector investment in the energy sector has not worked. Even its agenda of privatising Zesco has not worked because they didn’t seriously study the environment in the country before coming up with that policy.”
And speaking after the select committee toured rehabilitation works at Kafue Gorge Power Station on Saturday, Nkombo said Zesco needed to improve its efficiency.
He also urged Zesco customers to settle their electricity bills promptly.
“Before you talk about adjusting electricity tariffs, as a company you have to look at other challenges you’re facing such as improving the efficiency of operations,” Nkombo said.
“And as you look at revising the tariffs, it’s important that you understand the poverty levels among the Zambian people.”
Nkombo also observed that failure by most customers to settle their bills was negatively impacting on the operations of the power utility.
“Zesco is owed millions of dollars by a lot of customers including government. It will be gratifying if those people paid their bills as it then will be left to Zesco to put its act together,” said Nkombo.
The Parliamentary Select Committee, officials from the Ministry of Energy and Zesco board members were last weekend on a familiarisation tour of Kafue Gorge, Kariba North and South bank power stations.
Labels: ENERGY, PETER MUMBA, World Bank, ZESCO
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