Fuel shortage triggers market chaos, again
Fears are mounting in Juba over the potential fuel shortage in the country, which could lead to increased prices for the commodity.
Earlier this week, the Chairperson of the Central Equatoria State Chamber of Commerce, Robert Pitia, noted the rise in prices of fuel in the capital, Juba, and attributed it to low fuel supplies, a local media reported.
Pitia said most of the petrol stations in the capital remained empty due to delays caused by traders held at the Kenyan-Uganda borders.
Yesterday, The City Review conducted a spot-check on some of Juba’s petrol stations and found out that most stations were selling a litre of fuel at well above SSP600, compared to SSP350 in the last two weeks. This is an increase of more than 100 per cent.
In the visits conducted to several petrol stations in Juba, The City Review noted that only Trinity petrol stations sell a litre of fuel for less than SSP 600, while others sell it for SSP 600 to SSP 700 per litre.
Fuel stations like Nilepet, the government-owned petrol station, sell a litre of fuel at SSP600, while Trinity fuel stations sell it at SSP550.
Meanwhile, other private petrol stations like Pity Oil, Jur River, and others sell at SSP650 to SSP 700 per litre. However, in the black market, a litre costs between SSP1,000 to SSP1,200.
In an interview with The City Review, the motorists said although most petrol stations have the fuel, there has been a daily increase in the prices of the commodity due to the unpredictable trend of the market.
Motorists complain
Ahmed Rai, a motorist in Juba, said prices of fuel have gone up, almost doubling.
“Now in the town, it is only the Trinity Energy Petrol Station that sells less than SSP 600, but the rest of the petrol stations are selling at 600 to 700 SSP,” Rai said.
“The fuel is there, they sell it at high prices, and I am sure at the speed they are going, with maybe when [if] it reaches next week; we will not be surprised to buy a litre at SSP 1000,” he added.
The motorist said fuel shortages have always been there, but this time the prices are increasing at a high speed.
Another motorist, Isaac Bidal, said for two days now, he has been buying fuel at the new price of SSP 550 to 600 per litre from Trinity and Nilepet petrol stations.
“I fueled my car today at Trinity Petrol Station, which was better than what I got yesterday from Nilepet. They put a litre at SSP600 but today someone told me that Trinity was at SSP550 and that is what I got, and it is better,” he narrated.
Meanwhile, John Lado Wani, a trader at one of the petrol stations, said the delays in the supply of fuel have caused some stations to raise the prices of their fuel.
“The prices are set by the managers or owners. So, I do not know the percentage, but I think in South Sudan, people do not consider the calculation of percentages but rather what you think can fit for you,” Lado explained.
In September last year, Juba City experienced a similar fuel price increase when foreign truck drivers went on strike for nearly a month at the Elegu border point in northern Uganda. The truckers were demanding protection from the South Sudan government before entering the country.
This was when the country could not receive any fuel into the country, leading to a fuel shortage. As a result, the few available fuel prices increased.
