Mandatory ethanol blending ratio up
Government has, with immediate effect, increased the mandatory ethanol blending of unleaded petrol from 10 percent to 20 percent.
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Government has, with immediate effect, increased the mandatory ethanol blending of unleaded petrol from 10 percent to 20 percent.
Zimbabwe’s state oil company has issued a license to buy ethanol from the Zimbabwe unit of South African firm Tongaat Hulett to be blended with petrol, weeks after President Emmerson Mnangagwa called for higher use of the sugarcane by-product to help stem a worsening fuel crisis.
The double whammy of biting fuel shortages and steep transport fares is leaving thousands of commuters stranded — forcing many of them to hitch precarious rides on lorries and pick-up trucks, in the latest desperate scenes to afflict long-suffering Zimbabweans.
Petrol supplies have returned to normalcy at most service stations, while diesel is still in short supply.
Suspected smuggling of Zimbabwean fuel across the border is propelling the country’s demand to record highs, with fuel consumption spiking by a staggering 30 percent since July this year, permanent secretary in the Finance ministry George Guvamatanga has said.
Energy minister Joram Gumbo has had a baptism of fire since his recent appointment coincided with the deepening fuel crisis in the country that has sparked calls for his resignation from some quarters.
A deepening unease is settling over Zimbabwe as the country’s fragile local currency loses value at an alarming speed, prices soar, local and foreign businesses close their doors, and people wonder whether their savings are about to be wiped out once again, as they were during the economic collapse and spectacular hyperinflation that tore through the country a decade ago.
Most service stations in Harare have run dry with long queues emerging as the fuel crisis continues, despite Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor John Mangudya saying the sector is fully-funded.
By John Kachembere Zimbabwe’s severe cash shortages, which have seen banks rationing money, look set to inflict more damage on the economy in the coming months, with fuel and food shortages expected to worsen in line with the dying economy. This comes as many of the imported basic consumer goods — which were banned by […]
By Tatenda Dewa | Harare Bureau | A devastating fuel shortage is looming amid revelations that banks are failing to process importers’ orders due to a biting shortage of foreign currency in banks. Fuel shortages would offset inflationary trends and drive diesel and petrol to the black market, reminiscent of the period from the mid-2000s […]