By KETRA KALUNGA
LOCAL Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) have demanded for specific incentives among them government contracts and having 50 percent ownership of the industry.
Oil Marketing Companies Association of Zambia (OMCAZ) president, Kafula Mubanga said having contracts durectly with the government would enable OMCs to deal directly with oil refinery companies thereby cutting costs.
Dr. Mubanga said this was the best way in which Government would curtail systems in the oil trade and help the sector thrive and create employment opportunities.
“What is happening now is that most of those given government contracts are commodity traders and not OMCs so that in itself means that OMCs come im as third party to the transaction,” he said.
He said the previous government denied giving local OMCs contracts on grounds that they lacked capacity when infact not.
Dr. Mubanga however said the local OMCs have the capacity because the petroleum business is not an industry of money but that of contacts and vital legal instruments.
He bemoaned that facts that the OMCs have for a long time been subjected to the nonexistence issue of lacking capacity.
Dr. Mubanga has urged the government to quickly put in place measures to protect the interests of the OMCs against major players.
“Having 50 percent ownership is a matter that government should address because it speaks to employment creation, this is a lucrative industry,” he said.
