WINDHOEK – The Ministry of Mines and Energy has announced some minimal relief for motorists with petrol pump prices going down by 30 cents a litre this Wednesday, September 03. The Walvis Bay pump price for 95 Octane Unleaded Petrol is now N$11.99 per litre. Diesel prices, however, will remain unchanged at N$12.42 per litre for 550ppm and N$12.52 per litre for 50ppm.
Mines and Energy Minister, Isak Katali, also announced that the National Energy Fund (NEF) has been tasked to mobilise over N$4 billion to build an oil storage facility in Walvis Bay to ensure security of supply in the country during times of low supply. “This project would only see the light of day if there is a substantial amount of money to invest in it. It is for that reason the ministry has decided to grant a 10 cents a litre increase in the NEF levy (bringing it to 25 cents a litre) on all grades to help fund that project”, said Katali, in a statement released Friday. It is expected that the final increase will gradually reach a cumulative 40 cents a litre.
“The ministry always supports a fuel price that is kept at the lowest possible level not to disrupt transportation costs and thus the entire imported commodity price in Namibia. Through the National Energy Fund, it always subsidizes in the event of huge over-recoveries, and this month the market forces have been in favor of consumers”, explained Katali.
Katali went on to say that the price of crude oil plunged through August and achieved the largest single month drop since April, as Libyan oil appeared poised to return to the market while global demand muted. “Oil prices shot up in June to a 10-month high over concerns that violence in Iraq might disrupt supplies from OPEC’s (Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries) second largest exporter, but prices then drifted lower begging August as the advance by Iraqi insurgents stalled and oil exports were not threatened”, noted Katali.
Along with more certainty about Iraqi supplies, Katali said a large increase in Libyan crude is expected to soon hit the market. The minister noted that Libyan exports have been slowed for nearly a year because of labour strife and other unrest, but he said recent agreements between that government and local militia may allow exports to surge in the coming weeks. US crude production also continues to rise, adding even more oil to global supplies. “Filtered through the local market, these events brought about substantial over-recoveries to trigger adjustments of fuel prices at the pumps,” the statement said.