Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe says his department is working hard to revive the country’s capacity to refine crude oil.
He says they were in the process of reviving the country’s largest refinery in Durban, SAPREF, which was destroyed when floods hit KwaZulu-Natal earlier this year.
He says the country currently has 10.3 barrels of crude oil in its strategic reserve.
Six-million barrels are to be sold off to recover the R1,50 subsidy that motorists were granted earlier this year to offset rising fuel prices.
Calls for government to have its own oil refinery
In April, the African National Congress (ANC) called for government to have its own oil refinery. The proposal came as South Africa battles escalating fuel prices.
The Central Energy Fund has already begun the processes of procuring the SAPREF refinery from BP and Shell.
The governing party’s Economic Transformation sub-committee also wants farmers to donate some of their unused land to speed up land reform.
More details in the report below:
-Additional reporting by Samkele Maseko
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