Lobito – Zambia’s Energy Minister, Peter Chibwe Kapala, said Friday in the city of Lobito, Benguela province, that his country was interested in a partnership with Angola in the fuel refining sector.
For that reason, he said, Zambian president, Hakainde Hichilema had sent him to Angola to investigate, on the ground, the possibility of setting up a consortium.
For that purpose, the possibility of investment in an oil pipeline from the future Lobito refinery is being analysed, and thus the Zambian president noted the level of execution of work on that infrastructure.
Accompanied by high Angolan State entities, Peter Kapala, also a construction engineer, checked carefully the administrative buildings that support the refinery, as well as the terraces where the metallic structures will be installed.
ANGOP learnt that the visit followed discussions between Angola and Zambia to implement the pipeline that could link the two countries from the Lobito refinery, although the project is still in the feasibility study phase.
Asked about the benefits of this project for his country, he predicted a reduction in the cost of fuel, as in Zambia a litre of diesel is over a US dollar.
“Zambia is a country that does not produce oil and with this partnership it will have a lot to gain. The country is developing in industrial terms and as a result it plans to increase copper production, which will require an increase in the consumption of oil derivatives,” he said.
In his turn, the secretary of State for Oil and Gas, José Alexandre Barroso, confirmed that Lobito refinery was the fundamental element in this project, hence the interest of the Zambian minister in visiting the infrastructure.
Source: Angola Press News Agency