Mozambique Oil & Gas: “Govt has no choice but to raise fuel prices in line with international market” – Minister Tonela

Asked about the rise in petrol and diesel prices that took effect on Thursday, Mineral Resources and Energy Minister, Max Tonela said Mozambique has no choice but to keep domestic prices in line with world market prices for liquid fuels. Mozambique does not produce refined fuels, and so they are imported, mostly by private companies.

He warned that the current trend in world fuel prices is upwards. The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), was restricting oil production, and some non-OPEC members, notably Russia, were following suit. Events in the Middle East (most recently US President Donald Trump’s widely condemned decision to stage a unilateral withdrawal from the nuclear deal with Iran) were also driving prices upwards.

Tonela noted that prices rose to over 79 dollars a barrel on Wednesday, and feared that they would rise further, to over 80 dollars and perhaps as much as 100 dollars a barrel.