Majority citizen owned companies will enjoy a 10 percent stake in the importation of petroleum products effective Monday, a move which is aimed at promoting effective citizen empowerment in an industry dominated by large, foreign multinational firms.
According to the Botswana Energy Regulatory Authority (BERA) Act, 2022 and the Botswana Energy Regulatory Authority (Importation of Petroleum Products Allocation) Order of 2023 , effective 1st of April 2024, only majority citizen owned companies will be allowed to import petroleum products.
This move will see state oil company, Botswana Oil (BOL) importing 90% of the country’s fuel, while majority citizen owned companies have the right to import the outstanding 10%.
Botswana consumes 1.2 billion litres of fuel in a month.
A statement recently released by BERA states that all petroleum products import licences previously issued by the Authority shall become defunct on the 31st of March 2024. This is done in accordance with Regulation 56 of the Botswana Energy Regulatory Authority (Petroleum Products) Regulations, 2024.
The statement further states: “ Majority citizen owned companies that have been actively importing shall continue to do so for a period of six months from 1st April 2024 whilst also applying to be licensed.”
Currently about 81 trucks that transport petroleum products are owned by local companies (majority citizen owned) , a number which is expected to reach 125 once the import quota become effective then move to 200 going forward.
