Traders selected during the international call for tenders last May to deliver 30,000 metric tons of heavy fuel oil to ensure consumption in July, August and September 2022, have declined the offer, sources at the Ministry of Water and Energy have said.
Indeed, the Minister of Energy, Gaston Eloundou Essomba, launched on 15 June a new process to recruit new companies. But the operation looks delicate. If it is not completed in time, the country could face challenges in the supply of this fuel. This could lead to concessions.
In order to reduce the level of premiums paid when importing petroleum products, Cameroon is now selecting, through a competitive bidding process and with the level of premiums as a selection criterion, four traders responsible for making large quantities of fuel available in Cameroonian waters for sale to local marketers and importers.
According to Minee, this mechanism, put in place since the 2020 fiscal year and following the fire at the National Refining Company (Sonara), the country’s only refinery, has enabled the premiums per tonne of super and gas oil to be reduced from 128 and 176 dollars respectively to 38 and 45 dollars. According to Gaston Eloundou Essomba, this has resulted in annual budgetary savings of CFAF 150 billion.
Since then, the Nigerian Sahara Energy has been regularly recruited by Cameroon as its main trader. Vitol (Switzerland), Addax Energy (Switzerland) and Petra Energy SA (Switzerland) are the three next in line.
