|
Fuel hauliers have withdrawn threats to go-slow because they are having “fruitful discussions” with authorities on their transport rates.
Road Transport Operators Association of Malawi (RTOA) executive director Shadreck Matsimbe said yesterday hauliers are sure that “something will come up by the end of this week” hence the decision to abandon the scare.
“Government and other stakeholders are looking into the matter,” said Matsimbe.
At a meeting held in Blantyre about two weeks ago, the hauliers gave the Petroleum Pricing Committee (PPC) and government until Friday last week to raise the transport rates following the rise in fuel prices.
Fuel prices went up about a fortnight ago for the first time in seven months by an average 8.9 percent for Petrol and diesel and 7.5 percent for paraffin.
Petrol is now selling at K102.70 from K94.30 per litre, diesel is at K95.40 from K87.60 while paraffin has risen from K69.25 to K74.45. Hauliers use diesel to transport the fuel.
“Nobody goes into business for fun. It is for gain not losses. Most transporters are currently operating in negatives because they are subjected to operate at break even and it is not fun,” said one transporter during a gathering.
“With the kind of investments we make, we want our rates raised by Friday [last week] otherwise we will go get the fuel and just park the tankers in our yards,” he said.
The transporters also wanted a trigger mechanism in the pricing formula which should result in transport rate hikes once an increase in diesel prices pushes their operating costs by at least 10 percent.
But John Kapito, a member of the PPC said the threat surprised him because the Committee was waiting for the transporters to come up with rate adjustment proposals which he claimed had not been submitted.
Yesterday, Matsimbe said the said documents were not the issue because everyone knew the nature of the problem
|
