The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has moved to assure South Africans that there is no imminent threat of jet fuel shortages in the country.
Image: Armand Hough / Independent Newspapers
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has moved to assure South Africans that there is no imminent threat of jet fuel shortages in the country.
This comes after concerns were raised by industry experts about the potential for a fuel crisis due to the shutdown of local refineries and an ageing legislative framework that complicates the import and distribution of jet fuel.
The CEO of the South African Petroleum Association, Avhapfani Tshifularo, recently said the country relies heavily on imported fuel, but legal and logistical problems are making it hard to supply efficiently.
"Having them shut down it means the country has been reliant on the imported fuels, not only jet fuel, I mean, petrol and diesel. We import a lot of fuel into the country,". Tshifularo told Cape Talk.
"So if you look at pre-COVID, like in 2019, we were importing anything between 20% and 30%. But right now, we are importing approximately 60% of our requirements".
He warned that outdated legislation, particularly the Customs and Excise Act of 1964, restricts the movement of imported jet fuel from ports to inland airports.
In response, Johnstone Makubu, Deputy Commissioner at SARS, told CapeTalk that the revenue service is aware of the issue and is working with industry to ensure continuity of supply.
"So about a year ago, we would have given those temporary licenses to industry operators to be able to import the fuel. That arrangement comes to an end around the end of October 2025, and we have been engaging to try and ensure that there is an extension to that arrangement," Makubu said.
He said the Commissioner is currently applying his mind to the form and duration of that extension and expects to communicate a decision to the industry by the end of the week.
Makubu also pointed out that the Customs and Excise Act, while promulgated in 1964, has undergone amendments over time.
“We don’t foresee a shortage of fuel, we think South Africa needs to be certain that there will be no shortage, at least not as a result of uncertainty around the current temporary arrangement.”