The Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Limited (BOST) has assured the public of sufficient fuel to meet national demand for up to 43 days.
BOST revealed this in a disclaimer issued in reaction to media publications which supposed that the available fuel would suffice for 13 days only.
According to the company, the right amount of fuel available surpasses that carried in the publications and nullifies any apprehension about fuel shortage.
In its press statement, the company drew the figure from the National Petroleum Authority’s (NPA) estimates on the volume of fuel available in the country as of September 20, 2022.
It thus urged the public to disregard the publications attributed to its managing director that there was an imminent fuel shortage in the country.
“We have taken notice of a publication attributing a prediction of imminent fuel shortage in the country to our Managing Director, Edwin Alfred Provencal.
“The allegation is unfounded, and we wish to dispel it,” the release said.
According to the release, the publication misinterpreted the managing director’s comments.
The managing director said “as we speak, there are no strategic stocks in storage. The strategic stocks levy was zeroed out in the year 2006.
“The fuel stocks in our tanks are financed through arrangements with financial institutions which require we sell within a reasonable time to avoid refinancing.
“Instead of the expected minimum of six weeks of national demand in storage as per the second mandate, BOST currently has stocks which can only last 13 days in the event no further imports of products are carried.”
However, in their explanation to the statement of the managing director, BOST said the comment was in regards to the company’s products currently in stock and not total stocks available in the country.
“At any material moment, the total quantities of product available in the country, thus across all tank farms as tracked by the National Petroleum Authority, includes BOST stocks and stocks of private BDCs.”
