Fuel transporters hail ERB’s move

Transporters Association of Zambia (PTAZ) has commended Energy Regulation Broad (ERB) for introducing a programme dubbed “fuel marking” aimed at safeguarding the interest of all stakeholders in the petroleum industry.

In an interview with the Daily Nation, PTAZ secretary-general Benson Tembo, said that as an association, they had been advocating for fuel marking to avoid fuel privilege, contamination of fuel and smuggling of the product in the country.

Mr Tembo explained that there had been reports of some oil marketing companies smuggling fuel in the country which was making government lose billions of Kwacha, adding that for the country to benefit in the fuel sector, there was need to safeguard the product.

“For us to provide quality fuel to the users the product must be protected so fuel marking is one of the best concepts that that ERB has brought on board and taken and its long overdue. We expected this to be done a year or two ago.

“As an association we are excited that the fuel making was launched and it will take effect February 15 of this month,” he said.

Mr Tembo warned all those who were involved in the smuggling and contamination of the product to stop or else they would be visited by the law, adding that ERB was not alone but that it was working with other stakeholders.

“We know ERB is not everywhere but we as transporters are everywhere, our drivers are everywhere so people must know that we may be silent players in this but we are very effective and they should just adhere to the provision of this SI and do the right thing,” Mr Tembo said.

Last week ERB introduced a programme dubbed “fuel marking” aimed at safeguarding the interest of all stakeholders in the petroleum industry.

Speaking at the inaugural fuel marking stakeholders meeting in Lusaka, ERB Chief Executive Officer, Langiwe Lungu said the process would involve adding an invisible Bio-Chemical substance to all legitimately sold fuel in the country and the subsequent monitoring of the market concentration levels using appropriate proprietary detection equipment.

Ms Lungu said the fuel marketing was a technology that had been employed in various parts of the world and had been coupled with stringent punitive measures against culprits to enhance effectiveness.