ACSA denies its new fuel plans
CAPE TOWN – Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) ‘vehemently denies’ that its plans to institute operational changes in aircraft refuelling are an attempt to bypass sanctions imposed by Western governments on Russian aircraft in response to Russia’s war on Ukraine.
As reported by News24, Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Transport was this week briefed on the refusal by major oil companies, supplying jet fuel at ACSA airports, to refuel Russian planes.
Last year, two Russian planes could not get fuel from the large international fuel suppliers at OR Tambo and Cape Town International Airports. This was because fuel suppliers had to adhere to the sanctions imposed on Russia by their countries of origin and their own company policies.
ANC Committee members asked ACSA for assurance that South Africa (SA), which has not sanctioned Russia – won’t ‘indirectly impose’ sanctions on planes from that country because jet fuel suppliers refuse to refuel Russian planes.
In the briefing, ACSA highlighted plans for a new refuelling process.
Currently, large fuel suppliers lease airport fuel storage and hydrant facilities from ACSA. They own their equipment and vehicles to get jet fuel into planes. ACSA has an agreement with the oil companies that they can manage the fuel facilities and operations directly.
Manage
But the new planned process will see oil companies only supply the fuel. A new independent operator will manage the facilities on ACSA’s behalf. The independent operator will operate the tanks and fuel hydrant, and the oil companies will have to pay a fee to the operator.
The oil companies will consequently have no say in the refuelling of planes.
According to a presentation made by ACSA to the committee, this will deal with a scenario ‘where a sanctioned friend of the SA Government needs servicing and refuelling’.
ACSA CEO Mpumi Mpofu told the committee: “Refusal by Fuel Consortium members or through-putters to refuel aircraft from countries with sanctions against them will be averted”.
In its statement on Friday, ACS denied that it was ‘sanction busting’ and rejected any suggestion that the move was a direct response to the two Russian aircraft refuelling incidents last year.
“ACSA’s plan to separate jet fuel supplying companies from the refuellers and through-putters at its airports, by appointing its own independent refuelling and through-putting operator, dates back to 2020, long before the outbreak of hostilities between Russia and Ukraine,” ACSA said.
Approved
It said its Board approved a jet fuel strategy - as part of a recovery and sustainability - in June 2021.
The jet fuel infrastructure operating model was identified for revision because of, among other factors, increased dependence on imported jet fuel due to dwindling in-country refining capacity.
SA’s in-country refineries supply about 18 000 barrels of jet fuel per day, while the annual average consumption is approximately 40 000 barrels per day. In December 2022, the ACSA board approved a revised jet fuel strategy that included confirmation of the appointment of an operator, optimisation of operations and supply processes, and taking ownership of certain parts of the fuel value chain.
to 2021, but remain only one per cent above 2019,” he said.
City Lodge also said its rollout of the new food and beverage offering at Town Lodge and Road Lodge, as well as service and menu enhancements at City Lodge branded hotels has delivered a 132 per cent increase in food and beverage revenue, which now comprises 16 per cent of total revenue.
Assisted
“Innovation from our food and beverage offering has greatly assisted us in attracting new markets such as domestic leisure travellers,” said Group Operating Officer Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo.
“What was originally driven by guests wanting to avoid leaving their hotel for meals during the pandemic, has quickly become part of our standard offering.”
City Lodge said on Friday that despite economic pressure on consumers, occupancy in January 2023 had climbed to 43 per cent, from 31 per cent in the prior year, while as of late February, it has improved to 59 per cent.