Serious fuel shortage hits the North

MOST fuel stations in the North have run dry leaving many people in the region with no transport to return to their work places after the holiday break.

Yesterday, scores of people who live and work in other regions in the south and east of the country, especially in Windhoek, Walvis Bay, Swakopmund, Oranjemund, Luderitz, Keetmanshoop as well as Katima Mulilo and Rundu, were stranded at their village homes in the Omusati, Oshana and Ohangwena because there was no transport to bring them to Oshakati to take buses to their respective destinations. The Namibian has also learned that many farmers who wanted to go to their farms in the east of former Owambo, such as Mangetti, experienced problems too as there was no fuel for their vehicles to get them there.”This was and is really a disaster,” said one farmer.In the Oshakati area yesterday, motorists had to queue at two filling stations in Oshakati and at one in Ongwediva, trying to get fuel.”We do not have enough fuel for them all, only the lucky ones will get fuel from us here today,” a concerned Oshakati Caltex filling station site manager, Mathew Abraham, told The Namibian yesterday morning while busy assisting a long queue of motorists who wanted to fill up at the filling station.”The shortage of fuel has been the big problem for our customers during the whole festive season and has created inconveniences for our customers, especially for those who came from other regions to visit and celebrate Christmas and New Year with their families, relatives and friends,” said Abraham.”What is going on in Namibia nowadays, where is fuel and why are we suffering like this today?,” a concerned motorist in the queue asked looking to this reporter, probably for an answer.”I think I will just go and park my car, if I am not going to get fuel here today,” said tate Datius Kamari from Okatana who was also in the queue at tate Shali Caltex filling station yesterday morning.There are more than 30 filling stations in the former Owambo, and fewer than 10 were operating yesterday.Lukas Mwatunga, Engen depot manager at Tsumeb said the fuel shortage was due to the total cancellation of leaded 93 petrol which is being replaced with unleaded 95 petrol.He said that the big petrol companies in Durban and Cape Town in South Africa were adjusting their fuel refineries and emptying all their fuel tanks and depots in which they kept the leaded fuel.Mwatunga said that the shortage of fuel was not only being experienced in Namibia, but also in South Africa itself and in other neighbouring countries that get fuel from South Africa.However, he said that this is a short term problem and would be solved soon.He told The Namibian that a ship loaded with fuel had already arrived in Namibia and the fuel would be distributed to different areas as ordered.Tsumeb Shell depot manager Bullet Hansen said his company had sent two petrol tankers to their customers at Oshakati and Ongwediva yesterday, which they thought would rescue the situation.According to Hansen, this is leaded and unleaded petrol together.Both Mwatunga and Hansen could not say when exactly the leaded fuel would be phased out, but said that it will be soon after the refineries have adjusted the process.Mwatunga appealed to motorists and community members to be patient as this problem would be solved soon and the provision of fuel would return to normal.However some northerners felt that the situation would not be normalised.”I think this is the beginning of the fuel shortage problem and I am thinking that will be in the same situation like Zimbabwe,” one motorist who do not want his name to be published said.The Namibian has also learned that many farmers who wanted to go to their farms in the east of former Owambo, such as Mangetti, experienced problems too as there was no fuel for their vehicles to get them there.”This was and is really a disaster,” said one farmer.In the Oshakati area yesterday, motorists had to queue at two filling stations in Oshakati and at one in Ongwediva, trying to get fuel.”We do not have enough fuel for them all, only the lucky ones will get fuel from us here today,” a concerned Oshakati Caltex filling station site manager, Mathew Abraham, told The Namibian yesterday morning while busy assisting a long queue of motorists who wanted to fill up at the filling station.”The shortage of fuel has been the big problem for our customers during the whole festive season and has created inconveniences for our customers, especially for those who came from other regions to visit and celebrate Christmas and New Year with their families, relatives and friends,” said Abraham. “What is going on in Namibia nowadays, where is fuel and why are we suffering like this today?,” a concerned motorist in the queue asked looking to this reporter, probably for an answer.”I think I will just go and park my car, if I am not going to get fuel here today,” said tate Datius Kamari from Okatana who was also in the queue at tate Shali Caltex filling station yesterday morning.There are more than 30 filling stations in the former Owambo, and fewer than 10 were operating yesterday.Lukas Mwatunga, Engen depot manager at Tsumeb said the fuel shortage was due to the total cancellation of leaded 93 petrol which is being replaced with unleaded 95 petrol.He said that the big petrol companies in Durban and Cape Town in South Africa were adjusting their fuel refineries and emptying all their fuel tanks and depots in which they kept the leaded fuel.Mwatunga said that the shortage of fuel was not only being experienced in Namibia, but also in South Africa itself and in other neighbouring countries that get fuel from South Africa.However, he said that this is a short term problem and would be solved soon.He told The Namibian that a ship loaded with fuel had already arrived in Namibia and the fuel would be distributed to different areas as ordered.Tsumeb Shell depot manager Bullet Hansen said his company had sent two petrol tankers to their customers at Oshakati and Ongwediva yesterday, which they thought would rescue the situation.According to Hansen, this is leaded and unleaded petrol together.Both Mwatunga and Hansen could not say when exactly the leaded fuel would be phased out, but said that it will be soon after the refineries have adjusted the process.Mwatunga appealed to motorists and community members to be patient as this problem would be solved soon and the provision of fuel would return to normal.However some northerners felt that the situation would not be normalised.”I think this is the beginning of the fuel shortage problem and I am thinking that will be in the same situation like Zimbabwe,” one motorist who do not want his name to be published said.