Mantashe: US trade tariffs are not yet having an impact on the fuel price in the country

CAPE TOWN - Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe said that the United States trade tariffs are not yet having an impact on the fuel price in the country.

But he said that the only way to secure affordable fuel is through exploration and increasing the country’s refining capacity.

Answering questions in the National Council of Provinces on Thursday, Mantashe said it was also not helpful to securing the country’s energy future, that exploration efforts are regularly being blocked.

Mantashe said that since South Africa does not export any fuel to the US, there has been no impact on the local fuel price which is largely determined by the price of crude oil.

He said that the local petroleum sector is still mostly dependent on imports.

"The solution is in the discovery and exploitation of our own petroleum products. At this point in time every time we touch a petroleum exploration , as we do in the orange river basin, we end up court. Mantashe says if the impasse could be resolved - it would guarantee fuel supply and more secure pricing."

 He said that oil reserves sold during the Covid-19 pandemic have not been replenished.

Mantashe added that the decline in refining capacity is a risk to the economy and why dormant refineries need to be revived urgently.