By ZBC Reporter
A new oil pipeline set to be constructed from port Beira in Mozambique to Harare is expected to establish the country as a hub for the transportation of refined petroleum products in the SADC region.
The country’s second oil pipeline will be constructed through a joint venture between the National Oil Company of Zimbabwe (NOIC) and British firm, Coven Energy Limited.
Speaking to ZBC News Energy and Power Development Minister, Honourable Zhemu Soda said the deal which has been on the cards for a while is expected to be a game changer in the country’s energy sector.
The country has an excess storage capacity of 500 million litres so having this second pipeline will help the country become an oil hub in the region. We expect this pipeline to enable the transportation of petroleum products into the country and make us the distribution centre in the region especially for countries up north,he said.
NOIC Board Chairperson, Engineer Daniel Mackenzie Ncube noted that the pipeline will exhaust underutilised storage capacity in Mutare, further improving national oil infrastructure holding capacity.
We have got a lot of storage facilities in Manicaland which is not being utilised by the existing pipeline so the second pipeline will use those facilities and it will also benefit the country in terms of making it a hub of petroleum products because the pipeline will pass through three countries,said Ncube.
The British partner, Coven Energy limited which will have a 50 percent stake, has vast experience in the sector with several assets on the African continent.
Government will not commit any resources in the 1.3 billion United States dollar project as it is a private set-up between NOIC and Coven Energy limited, with the two parties expected to source funding for the project based on the feasibility studies that will determine the bankability of the project.
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