Mozambique Energy Minister Contradicts AMEPETROL
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Monday, 27 July 2009 |
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The Mozambican government has guaranteed that there will be no shortage
of fuel in the country and that fuel prices will not rise until the end
of the year, despite AMEPETROL organisations call for action and threat
of supply disruption.
Energy Minister Salvador Namburete, who is accompanying President
Armando Guebuza on his current visit to Brazil, gave this guarantee in
an interview with media in San Paulo (Note: see PetrolWorld 070907
archives for Mozambique/Brazil Biofuels Deal).
Namburete said the government had been surprised by a statement issued
by the Mozambican Association of Fuel Companies (AMEPETROL) which
threatened a disruption in fuel supplies unless the government raised
fuel prices, which have been unchanged since March. The AMEPETROL
statement claimed that "normal distribution and sale of petroleum
products are profoundly compromised", due to "insufficient action from
the Mozambican government".
Namburete said that ministers had read this statement with incredulity,
since it came at a time when discussions were already under way between
the government and AMEPETROL, and when the government had already given
written guarantees that it would ensure that neither the fuel
distribution companies nor motorists would pay for the rise in
international prices - in other words, that the government would again
introduce mechanisms to subsidise fuel.
Over the week-end, the government had been informed that
AMEPETROL has dropped its threats, and that all the companies should be
working normally. The government would monitor the situation to see
whether this was indeed the case this week.
PetrolWorld 260709
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