Page 7 - AfrElec Week 19

AfrElec COMMENTARY AfrElec
Tanzania: regional differences
Like Malawi and Zimbabwe, Tanzania has also reduced fuel prices in response to developments on world oil markets. But the cuts are not having the same impact on all regions of the country.
On May 5, Tanzania’s Energy and Water Util- ities Regulatory Authority (EWURA) released its May pricing schedule for petroleum products brought into the country via the port of Dar es Salaam. As of May 6, it said, retail price ceil- ings for gasoline, diesel and kerosene will drop by TZS219 ($0.095), 143 ($0.062) and TZS355 ($0.153) per litre respectively.
Motorists in Tanga, Manyara, Kilimanjaro and Arusha will see even more extensive cuts, reported The Citizen. In these northern regions, it said, retail prices will sink by TZS463 ($0.200) for gasoline and TZS377 ($0.146) for diesel.
In Dar es Salaam, these changes will bring per-litre pump prices down to TZS1,868 ($0.807) for gasoline, TZS1,846 ($0.798) for diesel and TZS1,568 ($?0.678) for kerosene, EWURA said. At the same time, it said, drivers in Arusha, Manyara, Moshi, Mwanga, Same and Tanga will be paying less than TZS1,800 ($0.778) per litre for gasoline.
Conclusion
Since Malawi, Zimbabwe and Tanzania are all dependent on imported petroleum products, lower fuel prices are not just good for drivers. They can also improve government finances by bringing down the amount of money owed to foreign suppliers by the state agencies that over- see the fuel trade.
The reduced outlays will probably have a limited impact, though. Two of the countries mentioned here (Zimbabwe and Tanzania) are still under a state-imposed lockdown, so they are consuming far less fuel than usual.
As a result, they are likely to see imports rise again once public health restrictions are loos- ened, so their fuel bills will only go down in the short term.
Meanwhile, Malawi has thus far refrained from introducing lockdown measures. The gov- ernment has tried to do so, but the high court issued a temporary injunction in late April that barred it from taking this step. Nevertheless, fuel demand is still relatively low, as the pandemic has caused an economic slowdown. As such, Malawi too may not see much long-term gain from low fuel prices. ™
Week 19 14•May•2020 w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m P7