Govt signs $500m oil deal with Trafigura
By Kabanda Chulu
Sat 01 Sep. 2012, 10:10 CAT
GOVERNMENT has signed a one year US$500 million contract with Netherland's multinational commodity trader, Trafigura, for the supply and delivery of finished petroleum products because Zambian investigative wings have cleared the company.
And energy permanent secretary George Zulu has claimed that the MMD government paid for six shipments of crude oil from Nigeria that have never been delivered.
Responding to questions from journalists after signing the contract for the supply and delivery of 216 million litres of petrol and 21 million litres of diesel yesterday in Lusaka with Trafigura - Puma Energy's parent company, Zulu said the engagement of suppliers for both finished and petroleum products and feedstock had gone through a transparent process.
"We have been accused of engaging in corrupt practices but we have done the best we can in the interest of the people and this is why the PF government brought back the abuse of office clause to deter serving officers from engaging in these vices," he said.
"We have received no such report from people and the security wings, in fact, the companies were cleared and we could not have engaged them if they were not cleared. The police, ZPPA (Zambia Public Procurement Authority) told us to go ahead and negotiate and the Attorney General's office gave advice at each and every stage."
On the Nigerian issue, Zulu could not explain clearly why Zambia sought to import crude oil from Nigeria when Indeni Refinery was built to process specific crude oil feedstock especially from the Arabian regions.
"The agreement to procure oil from Nigeria has been in place for the past few years except that the previous regime treated this matter in a confidential manner such that we are not sure whether the nation benefited from this arrangement," Zulu said.
"I was sent to Nigeria and what I found is shocking because there is a man…who is claiming US$5 million commission since he facilitated the deal but I can't say more and I urge security wings to look into this matter."
When asked about quantities involved, how much was paid and the period the incident occurred, Zulu said Zambia paid for six shipments worth 90,000 metric tonnes each under the MMD government.
"Nothing has been delivered but Zambia paid for these commodities; I have figures and documents showing that our Ministry of Finance paid but this money never reached the Nigerian Oil Company," said Zulu.Labels: MMD, OIL, TRAFIGURA LTD
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Trafigura, Gunvor deals above board - Zulu
By Chiwoyu Sinyangwe
Mon 04 June 2012, 06:58 CAT
THE selection of Trafigura and Gunvor to supply finished petroleum products and crude feedstock was done above board, says energy permanent secretary George Zulu.
The selection of Gunvor of Russia to commence negotiations with the government for possible contract to supply of 1.4 million tonnes of commingled feedstock and Trafigura on the supply of 216,920,000 litres of diesel and 21,230,000 litres of unleaded petrol for the next two years, has raised an uproar with allegations of corruption being thrown at the selection process.
Some sources close to the transaction say the hiring of Trafigura would result in the country losing US$2.2 million annually as the firm's bid was fifth in price variances in which Dalbit of Kenya was the cheapest.
But Zulu said the current tenders were the "most open", dismissing all accusations of corruption in the process.
Zulu, who said there was "a lot of distrust" in the country, said the decision to hire Gunvor and Trafigura was purely done by technocrats he led from his ministry without "undue influence from above".
"What is the government not doing for me to go and accept a bribe so I end up going to jail?" Zulu said in an interview yesterday.
"A lot of people from my ministry feared to participate in this process because of previous experiences. What you are seeing now is a manifestation of what was happening in the past. There is a lot of distrust with anything that we do. This is the most open tender and it has been discussed everywhere, and it was done above board. We are as much loving of Zambians as all those concerned. We want to be of service to the President and people of Zambia. When the President says he is fighting corruption, he is serious. So, this deal was done above aboard."
Zulu said he was not concerned about reports of alleged environmental damage in some parts of Africa by Trafigura where it illegally dumped toxic wastes resulting in it being fined US$1million (about K5.2 billion).
And in a recent article dated May 5, 2012, The Economist magazine revealed that the Swiss-based Russian oil supplier, Gunvor does not report its profits despite recording a revenue increase from US$5 billion in 2004 to US$80 billion in 2011.
The article stated that Gunvor had been recording tremendous growth in revenue despite the decline in its share of Russian seaborne exports of crude oil.
The Economist stated that Gunvor, which is the Kremlin's favourite oil trader, trades in Urals crude, a benchmark blend in north-west Europe and there are indicators that the company buys oil in Russia cheaply and, in theory, earns inflated profits when it sells the same oil on the international market at full price.
But Zulu insisted the two companies would operate by Zambian laws if the firms successfully negotiate their contracts.
He challenged anyone with evidence of corrupt activities in the contract awarding process to report to relevant crime investigative wings.
"Trafigura is already supplying the country; they run Puma former BP in Zambia," Zulu said.
"So, companies must operate within our laws. In Zambia, we have got laws related to safety of our people and the environment and so, if they are not going to abide by our laws, then we won't allow them to operate in here."
Zulu also said Trafigura was selected despite coming fifth in terms of price because the selecting committee based its decision on stability of price and supply.
"If our decision was based on the cheapest company, Dalbit would have been picked but there are other issues that the committee evaluating the tenders looked at," said Zulu.
Labels: FUEL, TENDER OFFERS, TRAFIGURA LTD
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Trafigura acquires BP’s assets in Namibia, Botswana and Zambia
By Chiwoyu Sinyangwe
Mon 08 Nov. 2010, 03:59 CAT
INTERNATIONAL oil trader Trafigura has bought BP's assets in the southern African nations of Namibia, Botswana and Zambia. Trafigura, controversial commodities conglomerate and the third-largest independent oil trader in the world, has bought BP’s assets in a deal, struck through the Trafigura subsidiary, Puma Energy International.
According to Namibia’s leading newspaper – The Namibian, that country’s mines and energy minister Isak Katali confirmed the deal.
Trafigura, accused of kickbacks in South Africa and found guilty of illegally exporting toxic waste from Amsterdam before reportedly dumping it in the Ivory Coast, has recently been named in a high-powered ploy to try and secure the contract to supply half of Namibia’s fuel.
The newspaper gave no amount for the sale, which it said had been confirmed by Katali.
BP has committed to sell up to $30 billion of non-core assets to pay for its devastating oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico this year.
A spokeswoman for BP in Johannesburg, Glenda Zvenyika, said the company was in talks to sell assets in the three countries, as well as Malawi and Tanzania, but no decision had been made.
“BP is in the process of selecting a buyer for its assets in five African countries and that's all there is at the moment. Before we make an announcement on the deal, these reports are just speculation,” said Zvenyika.
Namibian state-owned petroleum corporation Namcor had bid $93.1 million to buy BP's assets in the country, but failed to secure backing from the government.
Last March, BP Africa announced that BP Zambia Plc, the country's biggest oil marketing company (OMC), is being sold as BP Africa sells 75 per cent of its business in Botswana, Namibia, Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia while focusing on refining and marketing investment in South Africa and Mozambique.
BP Zambia Plc controls about 40 per cent of the total domestic oil marketing sector and is a key supplier of oil and lubricants to the key economic sectors like mining, manufacturing and agriculture, and controls about 75 per cent of the aviation oil segment.
Labels: BP, FUEL, OIL, TRAFIGURA LTD
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Trafigura to purchase 25% of Zambia’s 2010 copper output
By Fridah Zinyama
Wed 10 Feb. 2010, 11:10 CAT
TRAFIGURA Ltd is projecting to purchase about 25 per cent of the 1,000,000 metric tonnes of copper that Zambia will produce in 2010.
And Julien Rolland, a Trafigura Ltd representative, said the firm had in the past tried to bid for crude oil supply in Zambia but had failed to go through despite the vast experience that the company had in the field.
During a media briefing, Trafigura Ltd chief financial officer Pierre Lorinet said the company would buy about 20-25 per cent of all the copper that Zambia would produce this year.
“As a company, we are interested in expanding our operations in Zambia and are optimistic of increasing expenditure activities in the country,” he said.
Lorinet said Trafigura Ltd had a lot of dealings with the mining companies in Zambia and had been buying copper from them since its establishment in 2007.
“We are also interested in building warehousing facilities along the line of rail which will enable us to stock up on commodities whilst waiting to supply them to interested buyers,” he said.
“We believe that using the rail system is a more reliable form of transportation though the Zambian railway system still has some challenges with operations.”
Lorinet added that when the company completes putting its logistics in order, the company would be in a better position to improve its copper purchase and exports.
And Rolland added that Trafigura had tried to tender for provision of crude oil in Zambia but had so far been unsuccessful.
Trafigura Ltd is the third largest independent oil trading company in the world, and the second largest independent trader in the non-ferrous market, moving some two million barrels of oil every day and more than 9 million metric tonnes of non-ferrous material per year.
Trafigura is one of the world’s largest independent commodities trading companies, employing more than 1, 800 people in 44 countries, and 90 per cent of whom are local nationals, with a turnover of $55 billion in 2009.
Trafigura has investments in mines in South and Central America, Spain and North Africa and is geographically diversifying its mining portfolio to Sub-Saharan Africa.
Labels: COPPER, JULIEN ROLLAND, TRAFIGURA LTD
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