‘It was either that or no petrol’ – department explains Nelson Mandela Bay’s petrol price woes

The Department of Minerals and Energy had no choice but to exclude Nelson Mandela Bay from petrol price cuts, as the alternative was that the metro would have been left without fuel.

Department spokesperson Raphi Maake said the decision had been taken to support fuel security in the metro. He said there was a precedent for the decision as a similar exercise was undertaken in Kroonstad when Transnet decommissioned the pipeline in that area.

Nelson Mandela Bay has two ports. The Port of Ngqura does not have a facility for tankers to deliver fuel and the Port Elizabeth Harbour facility is out of commission.

Pamela Yoyo, the Transnet National Ports Authority’s manager for the two Nelson Mandela Bay ports, said an accident at the Port Elizabeth Harbour in June 2024 damaged the dolphin structures on the tanker berth.

“A service provider was appointed to conduct preliminary studies to determine the extent of the damage to the infrastructure and the cost of reinstating the berth,” Yoyo explained.

These included a vessel hull survey and diving inspection, a bathymetric survey (sonar and multibeam), a condition assessment of infrastructure and a berthing capability assessment.

Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe approved an application from the Liquid Fuels Wholesalers Association to exclude Nelson Mandela Bay from fuel price cuts across the country and rezone the metro as an inland region as wholesalers could no longer use the Port Elizabeth Harbour to drop off fuel for road tankers.

Read more: Gwede Mantashe considers application to exclude Nelson Mandela Bay from fuel price drop

The new petrol price in other coastal cities is R19.94 (from R21 in September) for 93 petrol. In Gqeberha this price will be R20.77. 

For 95 petrol, other coastal cities pay R20.26 (compared with R21.40 in September) from Wednesday, but in Gqeberha the price will be R21.09.

Petrol prices are even higher in Kariega and the Sundays River Valley.

Maake said the rezoning also affected the price of illuminating paraffin, but not LPG (liquid gas) because the gantry that is under repairs is not for gas. Maake also revealed the calculations done to determine the rezoning. 

For illuminating paraffin, the price has decreased by R0.82 while it has come down by R1 in other places. Where coastal cities will now pay R11.66, the price in Nelson Mandela Bay is R12.49, but this can be cheaper at retail.

Read more: Another big fuel price cut at the pumps from Wednesday heralds added inflation relief

Maake said the rezoning was temporary to make up for the fact that the Port Elizabeth Harbour could not be used.

Yoyo said they hoped repair works on the tanker berth at the Port of Port Elizabeth would be completed by end of November so that the berth could be commissioned in December. 

She said work had already begun. 

“Certain work packages that were required to precede the repairs are now completed, which include bathymetric surveys, dive inspection, salvaging, the recovery of infrastructure that was posing a risk to operations and the condition assessment. The repair works are planned for completion by the end of November 2024, with berth commissioning expected in early December 2024.”

She said they were now importing fuel through East London to ensure supply security in Port Elizabeth. DM