Government is in a race to tie up more government-to-government (G2G) fuel deals and ensure steady flow of the commodity from existing open tender deals as transporters complete hauling the fuel bought through Kenya’s arrangement with Abu Dhabi.
Through the Kenya G2G arrangement, Malawi procured 40 000 metric tonnes or about 51.5 million litres of both diesel and petrol and the first tanker carrying the fuel arrived at Songwe Border on January 4 2025.
before discussions started. | Courtesy of Mera
In an interview yesterday, Transporters Association of Malawi spokesperson Frank Banda said the remaining tankers carrying six million litres of the G2G fuel are expected to arrive in the country today, Wednesday.
He said: “The last tankers from Tanga Port will arrive on Wednesday. So far, we have about 160 tankers carrying six million litres. All have left Tanga Port destined for Malawi.
“After that transporters’ focus will go back to hauling fuel under the open tender process [OTS] from the ports in Dar es Salaam.”
National Oil Company of Malawi (Nocma) spokesperson Raymond Likambale said they expect another vessel to dock at Tanga soon.
He further assured of steady fuel supply as all their other traditional suppliers under the open tender arrangement are loading fuel.
Said Likambale: “Malawians may wish to be made aware that all our suppliers are loading and continue to do so. In other words, we were not only relying on Tanga Port volumes, as our traditional suppliers were also making products available to us.
“While the finalisation of the G2G [with United Arab Emirates-UAE] is in progress and at an advanced stage, our suppliers are still bringing in supplies until all is in place. Engagements with transporters are already underway to ensure a seamless start when the next vessel arrives.”
Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (Mera) spokesperson Fitina Khonje yesterday said government is currently holding bilateral discussions with oil-producing States to seal new G2G deals by March 31.
She said: “This week, a high-level government delegation led by the Secretary for Energy Engineer Alfonso Chikuni is holding meetings with State-owned oil companies from the governments of United Arab Emirates, Oman, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
“The target is to have a bilateral agreement(s) with one or two oil producing States signed by 31 March 2025.”
Khonje further said the current fuel suppliers under OTS still have undelivered fuel supplies enough to cover the needs of the country for at least six months.
“So, measures have been put in place to facilitate seamless transition from OTS to G2G,” she said.
Nocma data shows that Malawi uses 1.05 million litres each for diesel and petrol per day.
The country spends $600 million (about K1 trillion) on fuel importation per year, according to the Reserve Bank of Malawi. In total, the country needs $3 billion to meet its import requirements.
