By Leonard Kamugisha Akida and Tracy Acen Oiko
NATIONAL:
The minister of Energy and Mineral Development, Ruth Nankabirwa has dismissed reports that government oil reserves in Jinja are empty.
“Our reserve tanks have a capacity of 30 million litres, each day we consume 6.5 million litres, how many will the reserves take us?” Nankabirwa asked.
She further disclosed that government is constructing an oil tank in Kawuku Wakiso District while another oil reserve construction is in pipeline to store finished products from the refinery in Hoima.
“There is a tank of 70 million litres which is almost completed in Kawuku Wakiso District. Government is also going to construct a storage terminal in Mpogi to receive the finished product from the refinery in Hoima, but we cannot rely on tanks alone.
Between 300 and 900 fuel trucks are cleared at the Malaba and Busia border points from Kenya something which the minister says is the free movement of goods and services in the country.
She adds that because of the free movement of petroleum and other goods, the country is unable to be in a business of keeping fuel which it does not use.
Citing out Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC) a company that deals in selling fuel and managing the tanks on behalf of the government, Nankabirwa said that Uganda has been able to raise Sh1.7b from selling fuel.
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She Ugandans to stay calm calling for good relations with the neighbours so as the borders are not closed to stop the movement of goods and services.
In addition, the minister has directed that fuel price across the country should not exceed Sh 5,000 per litre
“The cases of scarcity in districts like Hoima will be discussed shortly with the ongoing replenishment of stocks,” she said
As of Thursday January 20, a litre of fuel at different fuel stations in Kampala was between Sh4190 and Sh7,000 where as Diesel was between Sh4,000 and Sh4,500 price varying from one fuel station to another. In areas outside Kampala, prices have shoot higher and a litre of petrol costs upto Sh12,000 while others fuel pumps still registered scarcity.
