Gov’t suspends fuel rationing

• Seeking where to stock excess diesel The government has announced the scrapping of fuel rationing; an ad hoc measure that had been taken to ensure distribution due to the shortage experienced by the East African region in the past two months. Speaking to The New Times yesterday, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Trade, Commerce and Investment Promotion (MINICOM), Antoine Ruvebana said: “we have lifted the fuel rationing and we are currently trying to inform the general public that everybody can have any quantity of fuel they want.” The lifting of rationing comes just a few days after the government announced an end to the fuel crisis. The government had in early December, 2008, ordered fuel dealers to serve a maximum of Rwf 15, 000 per vehicle, equivalent to about 20 litres of petrol per day. Ruvebana said: “we are drafting announcements that will be published in newspapers and broadcast on radios and television to ensure that the public is aware of the development.” The rationing was meant to help the government cushion itself against any likely fuel shortages and speculation in the country. However this policy did not apply to public transport dealers. Meanwhile, Ruvebana revealed that due to crisis that had prevailed for long, the government has found itself in a position where it has imported excessive diesel and is now sourcing for reserve tanks to stock it. “The diesel that was imported is too much. So far the reserves are full and there are more trucks loaded with diesel on the way from Kenya coming to Rwanda,” said Ruvebana. Asked how the government intends to deal with the diesel surplus, Ruvebana said that there are other oil storage facilities upcountry that are being refurbished and that is where the diesel would be kept. He however added that efforts to build more fuel reservoirs were underway. “There is an Arab company that has expressed interest in constructing more fuel reservoirs; the company is currently in talks with the Ministry of Infrastructure and we expect the talks to be fruitful,” said Ruvebana, without identifying the company. The Government was credited for maintaining the pump prices stable throughout the crisis that has been mainly traced to Kenya, Rwanda’s major entry point. Ends

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Gov’t suspends fuel rationing