Nelson Mandela Bay in line for price drop next Friday — fuel gantry fixed

17 Dec 2024

Nelson Mandela Bay and its surrounding towns can expect a drop of 80 cents to 84 cents/litre in the petrol price on Friday, 27 December after the fuel gantry in the Port of Port Elizabeth was fixed last Friday.

Residents of Nelson Mandela Bay and surrounding towns can expect a significant drop, around 80c per litre, in petrol prices on 27 December as Transnet recommissioned the fuel berth in the Port of Port Elizabeth.

The extraordinary drop in fuel prices comes after a settlement in the Gqeberha High Court when the Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber took Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Gwede Mantashe to court.

The tanker berth was reinstated as of Friday, 13 November and the first fuel tanker is expected to drop anchor in the harbour on Wednesday, 18 December.

In June 2024, a fuel tanker was being piloted into Port Elizabeth Harbour when it crashed into the only bunker normally used to transfer fuel to tanker trucks for distribution to petrol stations.

With the bunker rendered inoperable, liquid fuels wholesalers had to fetch petrol and diesel from East London Harbour – a 600km round trip.

To allow the liquid fuel wholesalers to recover the extra transport costs, Mantashe rezoned the Nelson Mandela Bay region as “inland” where it had been a coastal zone.

Raaphi Maake from the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources said the decision had been taken to ensure fuel security in the region.

Delays

Previously explaining the long delay in fixing the berth, former port manager Pamela Yoyo said a service provider had been appointed to conduct preliminary studies to determine the extent of the damage and the cost of reinstating the berth. The studies included a vessel hull survey and diving inspection, a bathymetric survey (sonar and multibeam), an infrastructure condition assessment and a berthing capability assessment.

The process to appoint a service provider to design and construct the berth was concluded only in September.

An initial date for the recommissioning of the berth was set for January, but later brought forward to the beginning of December. While Transnet didn’t make its deadline of Thursday, 5 December, it brought in extra teams to finish the work and managed to recommission the berth on Friday, 13 December.

An investigation into the accident was completed, but “due to legal considerations, further details cannot be offered at this time” according to Transnet.

Recommissioning finally completed

Acting port manager David Goliath confirmed last week that the recommissioning of the fuel berth had been completed.

“The construction works aimed at reinstating the tanker berth commenced in September 2024… The appointed contractor’s scope of works entailed salvaging collapsed steel infrastructure, reinstating firefighting and electrical supply and installing lighting infrastructure and a steel walkway. The recommissioning of the berth follows a stakeholder engagement with oil majors to demonstrate operational readiness,” Goliath said last week.

He said the resumption of operations would aid fuel security supply and pricing for the region.

Daily Maverick was the first to break the story on how Transnet’s delays in fixing the gantry led to an application to have the metro rezoned, resulting in a significantly higher petrol price for residents.

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

The Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber took Mantashe’s decision on review, arguing in papers before the Gqeberha High Court that he considered no alternatives but to put up the price.

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

In papers before the court, Chamber CEO Denise van Huyssteen said businesses in the Nelson Mandela Bay metro were suffering economic losses of about R50-million a month as a result of Mantashe’s decision to implement revised transport tariffs as part of the region’s petrol price.

“We note that this pricing structure is supposed to be temporary in nature, and once the fuel berth is repaired the area will return to its former allotted zone. We, however, estimate that this decision is causing an irrecoverable direct loss to the local economy of approximately R50-million per month.

“By way of example, the October unleaded 95 petrol price decrease was supposed to have been 114 cents per litre, but due to the rezoning of Nelson Mandela Bay, this price decrease was only 31c per litre, representing a loss of 83c per litre. In November, the price of unleaded 95 petrol increased by 25c a litre but due to the inland zoning this was increased by 83c a litre for consumers in Nelson Mandela Bay,” she said in her affidavit.

She confirmed this week that they had been informed that Mantashe would rezone Nelson Mandela Bay and its surrounding towns on 27 December, leading to a significant drop in the petrol price. Daily Maverick has also seen documentation confirming this.

The Department of Mineral and Energy Resources is yet to comment on the latest developments. DM

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Delays

Recommissioning finally completed