US $75 million fuel deal flops

South Africa's ABSA Bank Limited has withheld a US $75 million line of credit to the National Oil Company of Zimbabwe (NOCZIM) to buy fuel until the Zimbabwean firm matches the bank's support with an equivalent amount of money in local currency, the 'Financial Gazette' said on Thursday. NOCZIM's managing director Webster Muriritirwa was quoted as saying that NOCZIM had failed to meet ABSA's demand, resulting in the South African bank withholding its support. "The ball is really in our court to fulfil ABSA's conditions before the facility kicks off," Muriritirwa said. Muriritirwa said Zimbabwe's fuel supplies remained critical and said he saw no end to the crisis as long as the country had no adequate foreign currency to import fuel. "The situation is still very critical and we urge everyone to exercise caution in the use of fuel," he said.