Minister promises immediate action on NMB fuel price when harbour repaired

The Department of Energy said on Tuesday it had not been told of any delays in recommissioning the fuel berth in Port Elizabeth harbour and promised that fuel prices for residents of Nelson Mandela Bay and its surrounding towns would be adjusted as soon as possible after the berth was operational.

However, with a promised recommissioning date of Friday, 6 December, it seems unlikely that residents will benefit from the next price adjustment which is scheduled for Wednesday, 4 December.

The berth was damaged in June after a fuel tanker vessel ran into it while it was being guided into the harbour by a Transnet marine pilot. As a result, liquid fuel wholesalers had to send road tankers to East London, 300km away, to fetch petrol. This led to an escalation of petrol transport costs.

The Liquid Fuels Wholesalers Association approached Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Gwede Mantashe, to request the rezoning of the area as “inland”. Mantashe did this at the beginning of October. Surrounding towns that had always benefited from being in the “coastal” price zone for fuel were now zoned as “inland”, allowing liquid fuel wholesalers to recover the road transport costs.

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

Read more: Eastern Cape’s Kariega and Kirkwood bear brunt of petrol price adjustments due to Port Elizabeth Harbour woes

Senior manager in the Department of Energy, Raphi Maake, said at the time that the decision had been taken to protect the security of fuel supply in Nelson Mandela Bay and surrounding areas.

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

The original date provided for the recommissioning of the Port Elizabeth Harbour fuel berth was “the beginning of December”, while Transnet had previously mentioned Friday, 6 December as the date. 

Maake did not commit to a date on Tuesday. Instead, he said Mantashe had promised to rezone the affected areas for the price adjustment that followed the recommissioning of the berth.

“Minister Gwede Mantashe has promised that he will revert all affected magisterial district zones back to their ‘original zones’ in the monthly adjustment immediately following the restoration of liquid bulk operations at the tanker berth at the Port of Port Elizabeth,” said Maake.

He said his department had not been informed by Transnet of any anticipated delays in the recommissioning of the berth. If the berth is commissioned on Friday, 6 December it will be too late, however, for the December price adjustment that is taking place on Wednesday, 4 December.

Maake said the transport cost component was a cost recovery element fixed in the price structures of petrol and diesel. The pump prices of petrol are regulated, and no one can profit unduly.

Acting port manager Sinalo Sodela said he could confirm that construction company Stefanutti Stocks was working on site. 

“Excavations for the new anchor blocks are complete and concrete casting is under way. The assembling of components such as the new dolphin structure and access walkway is done off-site and nearing completion. The project is planned to be completed at the beginning of December 2024,” Sodela said. She said a crew of 25 was on site.

“Depending on the work being undertaken, subcontractors that provide specialist services and equipment, such as diving works or crane lifting operations, account for about 15 people, bringing the total to approximately 40 people. It is worth noting that components such as the dolphin structure and walkways are assembled off-site, which is not accounted for in the numbers provided,” she said, adding that the work was scheduled to be completed at the beginning of December.

Sodela said the estimated cost of repairs to the facility was R20-million.

The Automobile Association (AA) said this week that current unaudited data from the Central Energy Fund (CEF) indicated a slight reduction in petrol prices, and more substantial increases in diesel and illuminating paraffin prices. 

The AA said indications were that the price of ULP95 was expected to drop by about 5c/l, while ULP93 was set for a reduction of about 16c/l. Diesel was expected to increase by between 40c/l and 38c/l, while illuminating paraffin would rise by about 39c/l. 

“Although the rand/US dollar exchange rate was stable in the first two weeks in the period under review, the rand weakened slightly against the US dollar following the American presidential elections, resulting in a less substantial decrease for all grades of petrol. International petrol prices have been declining for a while hence the expected decrease in petrol prices in December, but diesel prices continue to move in the opposite direction,” the AA noted.

The official fuel price adjustments for December are likely to be announced at the end of November with the official adjusted fuel prices coming into effect on 4 December, the first Wednesday of the new month. DM