Long queues at fuel pumps

Long queues formed outside Zimbabwe's petrol stations this week, a week after President Robert Mugabe announced that multinationals would have to step in to help keep the national fuel pumps supplied.

Last weekend it was reported that a deal with Libya's Tamoil to supply 70 percent of Zimbabwe's fuel needs had collapsed "for commercial reasons", widely believed to be the country's failure to keep up with payments.

However on Tuesday the Daily News quoted Libyan ambassador Mohammad Azzabi as saying: "As with any commercial transactions the world over, hiccups are bound to occur here and there, but that does not constitute a collapse of our commitment to Zimbabwe. That commitment is total and above small hiccups that may occur from time to time."

The Indigenous Petroleum Marketers Association (IPMA) attributed the shortages to service stations stockpiling ahead of the national budget on Thursday.

"There are no shortages. It is just people stockpiling in case there is an increase in the price in this week's budget announcement," IPMA chairman Gordon Musarira told IRIN.

The IPMA consists of 16 "Zimbabwean born" oil operators who source their supplies from the parastatal National Oil Company of Zimbabwe (NOCZIM).

However, the opposition Movement for Democratic Change economic affairs spokesman Eddie Cross said Zimbabwe was running dry.

"There simply is no fuel at service stations. The majority of fuel retailers have not got stock. This is the worst the fuel crisis has been. People are trying to keep their tanks full and this is exacerbating the shortages. Public transport is affected and half the workforce is walking to work."

Cross said that the deteriorating exchange rate was seeing speculators from South Africa and Zambia buying fuel and taking it back over the border, and this was also depleting supplies."

After bilateral talks on Monday the South African government said that providing fuel aid to Zimbabwe was "something that could be discussed." The newspaper Business Day reported that could give South Africa political leverage over Zimbabwe and "bite to its policy of quiet diplomacy".

Fuel manufacturer Sasol said it was not currently supplying Zimbabwe, and Engen, which has a deal to supply
NOCZIM, was waiting for clarification on NOCZIM's future role following the opening of the import market to multinationals.

Zimbabwe is currently in the throes of a severe economic crisis with spiraling inflation and dwindling foreign exchange reserves which has complicated the fuel import market. Compounding this was a humanitarian crisis which could see up to six million people facing severe food shortages by the next harvest.