Authority Born to Regulate Fuel Distribution

Mar 30 , 2019

Ethiopia is going to get a new government organ to oversee the supply and distribution of fuel products in the country. The Council of Ministers approved a proclamation for the formation of the Petroleum & Petroleum Products Supply & Distribution Regulatory Authority. Drafted by the Ministry of Trade & Industry, the bill was tabled to the Council of Ministers yesterday March 30, 2019. After deliberating on the bill, the Council approved the draft proclamation and sent it to parliament for legislation. The new authority will be responsible for making sure the fuel that is imported is up to standard, that it will not cause damage to humans or property and that it is appropriately traded on the local market. More specifically, the Authority will regulate the purification, supply, storage, transportation, distribution, retail and other related businesses in the fuel sector. Petroleum is one of the major products that consume a considerable amount of foreign currency. In the last fiscal year, the country imported 5.2 billion litres of fuel for three billion dollars. In the same period, the state earned a total of 2.84 billion dollars from the export of commodities.