Zimbabwe: FMI Energy Denies Claims of Dealers
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Wednesday, 12 October 2011 |
Masawara Chief Executive Shingi Mutasa has vigorously denied that subsidiary FMI Energy has sought to change its lease agreements for fuel service stations. In an newspaper interview, Mutasa said that no changes had been made to agreements that existed before Masawara acquired assets owned by BP Zimbabwe, which include 72 retail sites.
Dealers operating these sites had claimed, in a letter to the Government, that the company had made several moves to disempower them since the acquisition, and that efforts to discuss their grievances with management had failed. They claim that FMI has limited lease agreements to one-year contracts without renewal options.
“With all due respect, it is unjust and impractical to grant a short-term lease of one year to dealers who have been in operation for at least 10 years on average. Such tenants have a legitimate right to have a lease agreement of at least five years or renewable lease contracts, to say the least,” they said in the letter, issued through lawyers. They also allege that FMI energy no longer repaired or maintained equipment, and that the company was proving “evasive” on this issue.
Mutasa flatly denied most of the claims, saying that FMI had not issued any new leases. “Every single lease that is there is a historical lease and all of them are one year leases. So I think they are being unfair when they say I am issuing restrictive leases. I have not issued one lease. It would be different if I had issued one. It is BP Zimbabwe who changed leases to one year,” he said. PetrolWorld 111011
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