Fuel shortage back in Lilongwe

By Wezi Gausi

Fuel shortage continues to persist in Malawi’s capital city, Lilongwe, a week after the Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (Mera) and National Oil Company of Malawi (Nocma) assured the public that the development was just temporary.

On Monday morning, most filling stations in the capital city had no petrol while in the afternoon, both petrol and diesel were in short supply.

A visit to some gas stations revealed long queues of heavy-duty vehicles, waiting in hope that fuel would come for them to fill their tanks.

In an interview, Mera spokesperson Fitina Khonje said nothing has changed since Mera and Nocma told the press about the fuel status in Malawi last time.

“You might recall that during the press briefing the two institutions said there were fuel disruptions due to forex shortages and that they were only able to bring in 75 percent of fuel. That is what is on record, so I cannot comment as to whether anything new has happened,” Khonje said.

Over the past week, Malawi has been hit by a fuel crisis that authorities said they are managing.

The authorities had alleged that the shortage had been necessitated by increased demand that time due to a number of entertainment engagements the capital city was hosting.

Addressing the press in Lilongwe, both Nocma and Mera representatives had assured the public that the fuel shortages would come to an end soon.