Port Manager defends World Oil

17Feb 2016
Business
The Guardian
Port Manager defends World Oil

A little known firm, World Oil has not illegally connected its manifold to tap fuel from Kigamboni depots as alleged by some sources but rather gets the commodity from Tanzania Ports Authority manifold.

Minister for Energy and Minerals, Prof Sospeter Muhongo

Acting Dar es Salaam Port Manager, Hebel Mhanga told The Guardian yesterday that its only Tanzania International Petroleum Reserve (Tiper) which has an illegal connection. “World Oil gets fuel from our manifold just like many other clients in Kigamboni,” Mhanga argued.

He pointed out that Tiper should comply with Prime Minister, Kassim Majaliwa’s directive to disconnect its illegal pipeline within the specified period because it’s not legitimate.Manifold is an inlet connecting flowlines from a main fuel depot to distributors.

Tiper which is jointly owned by Treasury and Addax Oryx has the largest fuel reserve tanks with capacity of over 141,000 cubic metres.

Prime Minister, Kassim Majaliwa visited Kurasini Oil Jetty and Kigamboni depots last week and ordered Tiper to disconnect its manifold from the storage facilities within a month.

The PM also ordered government agencies to see the possibility of severing a contract which the state has with Tiper which is managed by Addax Oryx employees.

Industrial sources told The Guardian that senior Tanzania Ports Authority have been working with World Oil Limited which also has fuel storage facilities and allegedly own manifold which denies Treasury billions of shillings in revenue.

The sources said since 2008, TPA made a decision to convert the line to automotive gas oil (AGO) offloading from Kurasini Oil Jetty as the line was idle and there was a lot of vessel queuing at the port awaiting to offload creating safety hazards and incurring huge demurrage cost of up to three months.

“TIPER started receiving AGO through the Dia 18 TPA line in year 2009 through the T-Junction that was built by TPA and only modified by TIPER to handle the gasoil instead of crude,” sources at Tiper said.

Then things changed abruptly in October 2011, when Tiper received a letter from TPA claiming that the use of the Dia. 18 inch line by TIPER to deliver was illegal and TPA wanted to initiate an agreement so that Tiper should pay for use of the line.

“We replied by confirming that we are ready to enter into an agreement and pay if we can agree on the fees and get the TPA invoice but TPA remained quite until 2012 when the new multiproduct Single Point Mooring was under construction,” the source said.

Through their consulting engineer Professor Joseph Lunyoro, TPA officially informed Tiper that the connection at the land fall was installed contrary to engineering norms hence causing mechanical stresses on the expansion loop of the line.

“Tiper engaged a pipeline consultant to verify this and no stresses were confirmed and we wrote back to TPA to confirm that the connection is technically properly done,” the company’s source stressed.

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