Friday, March 29, 2024

Government scouting for $410 million to upgrade Indeni

Share

DEPUTY Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry Miles Sampa
DEPUTY Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry Miles Sampa

GOVERNMENT is scouting for $410 million to upgrade Indeni Oil refinery and thereafter sell 49 percent of the company’s shares to an equity strategic partner and prolong its long term reliability.

Commerce, Trade and Industry deputy minister Miles Sampa told parliament yesterday Government wanted to upgrade the company from its current form of being just a separator into an oil refinery to allow it to produce low price gas and pure crude oil and other petroleum by-products.

He was responding to a question for oral answer raised that Chipili PF MP Davies Mwila who wanted to find out why the Government had decided to sell some shares in Indeni oil refinery to the public.

Government was exploring all avenues to come up with a strategic partner who would assist it co-finance and upgrade Indeni oil refinery.

He said Government had realized that Indeni had not been very efficient hence the move to upgrade and sell its shares.

Luena UPND MP Getrude Imenda wondered what happened to the Italian Government investor who was running the refinery together with the Zambian Government and Mr Sampa informed the House that the Italian investor disengaged from the partnership.

10 COMMENTS

  1. Just shut the thing down and import finished product like the rest of the region. We have a refinery and yet have higher fuel costs than our neighbours who do not have one!

  2. Brother Miles,look at alternatives to reviving. Sometimes it is better to chop of a cancerous part of the body. It is cheaper to get processed fuel from Angola (to North western and Western parts of Zambia), from Tanzania (to Northern, Muchinga, Luapula and northern part of Eastern province), from Mozambique (to Eastern province of Zambia) and from South Africa (to Southern and central provinces).
    With the kind of money required to renovate, strategic depots can be opened across Zambia.

  3. When are we going to stop begging and borrowing as a nation that is endowed with so much wealth, that foreigners come to invest in us?

    Is not the oil business a lucrative activity? Where is the revenue from Indeni, can it not be reinvested to pay for the required refurbishment, or has the money been used to pay politicians?

    • For sure, lets ask; does Indeni operate at a profit or lose? How are the workers paid?
      Dependence is very bad. When will Zambia do things of her own!
      I like your comment brother.

  4. Again? this is where Zambian’s wealth disappears in thin air.
    2007 – Government threw $65 million for refurbish the plant
    2009 – Government became 100% owner after buying the 50% stake from the Italians.
    2010 – $40 million was pumped into the refurbishment of the Bitumen plant
    2010 – Government put out a 50% shareholding with a condition to whoever won the bit to invest $100 million in refurbishment
    2011 – Government announced a $600 million new refinery in Bwana Mukubwa – agreement now signed to start construction in 2016(election gimmick) at a new cost of $1.6 billion.
    2012 – Signed £2.5 billion oil deal with Angola to move finished products from Lobito all the way to Lusaka. What happened to the oil and Gas projects in NWP? Wouldn’t it make economic sense to build a refinery…

  5. Scouting for a loan for $410m….then sale 49%…vultures and loan sharks are just looking at this and rubbing their hands with glee…this is the selfsame reason I always say politicans our politicians would still say our mines for a song given a second chance. They are no position to handle such issues especially corrupt empty tins like Sampa.

  6. You just get a sense gov’t is not honest nor capable of running our industries. They account for actions taken after the event! Where was the opposition when all the decisions were made to make changes to the oil refinery.

    I think we need a citizen representative in each of these industries to report to us timely any time they want to change things. You can’t turn your back on the Zambian gov’t and hope they look after your interests!

    the issue is keeping opposition in the loop before gov’t makes changes. We want more accountability measures. Things discussed with opposition before hand. We don’t want to ask for after reports.

  7. After squandering th euro bond and other nkongole, PF now rues the opportunity cost, even the best alternative of upgrading indent, compared to bogus investments in ZRL which have not yielded the desired welfare; jobs, reliet to overburdened roads & transportation alternatives/ competition for benefit of citizens.

Comments are closed.

Read more

Local News

Discover more from Lusaka Times-Zambia's Leading Online News Site - LusakaTimes.com

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading