INDENI Petroleum Refinery in Ndola yesterday closed down temporarily for six days, with an assurance from Government that this will not create a shortage of petroleum products.
And Government says it has made progress in rehabilitating strategic reserve tanks in some parts of the district to ensure a smooth supply of fuel to consumers across the country.
Minister of Energy and Water Development Kenneth Konga said the six-day shutdown was prompted by the need to create operational storage space for petroleum products at the refinery, as at the moment the facility is filled to capacity.
Mr Konga, who announced this in a statement read by his deputy Lubinda Imasiku in Ndola yesterday, said the country will have more than adequate stocks of petroleum products during the shutdown.
“The shutdown will not compromise the availability of petroleum products,” Mr Konga said.
Mr Konga said due to a continuous build-up of stocks through local production and imports, there will also be sufficient fuel during the 2010 periodic maintenance refinery shutdown from September 1 to October 15, 2010.
He said the six-day shutdown will create enough operational storage to enable resumption of operations on April 16, 2010.
Mr Konga said the refinery cannot continue operating without adequate storage space as this results in re-circulation of processed products to the feedstock storage facilities which is an additional cost to the refining process.
“The refinery has currently run out of operational storage space due to depressed demand for petroleum products which is characteristic of rainy seasons when open pit mining activities and road construction significantly reduce,” he said.
Mr Konga said stock levels of petroleum products at the fuel terminal and Indeni Petroluem Refinery are 54,643,000 litres for diesel, which is sufficient for 50 days of national consumption at current daily consumption.
There are 10,425,000 litres of low sulphur diesel, which is enough for 70 days of national consumption at daily consumption.
He said the terminus has 13,717,000 litres of petrol which is equivalent for 20 days of national consumption at current daily consumption.
There is 3,672,000 litres of Jet A1 which is enough to last 25 days and kerosene supplies are at 2,029,000 litres to last 41 days.
[pullquote]“The refinery has currently run out of operational storage space due to depressed demand for petroleum products which is characteristic of rainy seasons when open pit mining activities and road construction significantly reduce,” he said.[/pullquote]
Heavy fuel oils stocks are at 29,109 metric tonnes which is sufficient for 162 days.
And responding to questions from journalists, Mr Imasiku said that Government will soon award contracts for the rehabilitation of reserve tanks and that the job should be completed in September this year.
He said a reserve tank that was recently rehabilitated at Tazama terminal will increase the storage capacity of petroleum products.
He said Government under President Banda’s leadership has done well in stabilising fuel stocks and supplies.
He said the flow of imported fuel was coming in as scheduled and the first consignment to be shipped by Glencore Company limited, a company that has been contracted to import crude, is expected to dock in Dar es Salaam on April 22, 2010.
And Mr Imasiku said Government is holding discussions with Indeni on a US$16.7 million foreign debt that was incurred jointly by Government and Total El-finale International, the former investor in the country’s sole refinery.
[Zambia Daily Mail]
Imasiku has the correct data,all tanks are full and there will be no shortages.