By STEVEN ZANDE –
GOVERNMENT has said the fuel supply in Lusaka has normalised following constant supplies to the capital city.
Ministry of Energy Permanent Secretary Emelda Chola said Lusaka Province had received enough fuel stocks while the fuel supply in Livingstone, in Southern Province, and Solwezi, in North-Western Province, would stabilise soon.
Brigadier General Chola said in an interview yesterday that her office had instructed Oil Marketing Companies in affected places to go to Lusaka for restocking.
She said resumption of operations at Indeni Oil Refinery would rectify the fuel shortage.
“Lusaka has enough fuel stocks, but the shortage has persisted in Livingstone, Solwezi and a few other towns. But with Indeni back on line we hope to resolve the problem very soon,” Brig Gen Chola said.
She urged motorists and other fuel consumers not to panic because Government was working towards resolving the shortage.
Meanwhile, the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Zambia and Mozambique when President Edgar Lungu visited that country on the construction of a coal-fired power plant would further mitigate the power deficit.
Brig Gen Chola said the MoU would result in construction of a coal-fired power plant which, upon completion, was expected to produce 1,200 megawatts of electricity.
She said the two governments were still working on details regarding funding and other modalities for the project.