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Zambia shuts down sole oil refinery due to lack of crude oil

Xinhua, March 11, 2015 Adjust font size:

Zambia's sole oil refinery has been shut down, a move that will plunge the country into further fuel shortage, the Times of Zambia reported on Wednesday.

Indeni Petroleum Refinery situated in Ndola city in the Copperbelt province has been shut down due to lack of crude oil feedstock, according to the company's managing director Maybin Nooble.

"We have shut down operations due to lack of crude oil," the official was quoted as saying by the paper.

Some parts of Zambia, including Lusaka, the country's capital, are experiencing a shortage of fuel, especially petrol, and the shutdown of the 24,000 barrel-per-day refinery will worsen the situation.

But Minister of Mines, Energy and Water Development Christopher Yaluma on Monday said the current shortage was artificial and that it had been caused by the failure by Oil Marketing Companies to collect fuel from depots.

The refinery firm is known for frequent shutdowns due to archaic equipment. In July 2013, the government approved the sale of 49 percent shares in the refinery firm. Endi