Department to engage on bunkering

Stakeholder engagement in the Port of Ngqura

SOUTH AFRICA: The Deputy Minister of Transport, Mkhuleko Hlengwa, will address the bunker industry at an engagement hosted by the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) next week in the Port of Ngqura.

Planned as part of SAMSA’s October Transport Month activities, the session comes at a pivotal time following the lifting of the moratorium on bunkering activities in Algoa Bay alongside the recently gazetted environmental regulations published by the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment.

The DFFE’s regulations restrict economic activity in the offshore bunkering sector in Algoa Bay and only provides for three separate operators to undertake ship-to-ship activities in the bay.

With two companies now active, this only allows for a single additional player to enter the market so it will be useful to get an understanding of SAMSA’s and the DoT’s position on whether there is room to negotiate with the DFFE on this or whether a second offshore location has been identified.

The Bunker Industry Association South Africa (BIASA) has indicated that they have sought legal opinion on the DFFE’s regulations – highlighting the lack of proper stakeholder engagement that was undertaken after the amended regulations were published.

PHOTO: Operations in Algoa Bay prior to it being shut down by a directive from the South African Revenue Service in 2023. (© Maritime Review Africa)

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