Lack of gas vs. price speculation in Maputo

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Lack of gas vs. price speculation in Maputo

12:12 CAT | 11 Jul 2017

O País / Search for domestic gas calls for the long trek in Maputo

The search for domestic gas has become a real marathon in Maputo City. On foot or by car, this is how the citizens of Maputo City have been spending their last few days, with cooking gas in such demand that there is little availability.

Consumers from neighbourhoods on the outskirts of the city have come downtown hoping to find supplies, but without success.

“We have been looking for gas since Saturday, because there is no gas in our neighbourhood, so we came to the city and we already went to four outlets, but we did not find it and so we are returning home,” one interviewee reported. “We do not know how we will live,” they say.

With little gas and a lot of demand, there is room in the market for opportunism, to the indignation of some of residents.

“I’ve been right across the city looking for gas and still have not found it. Some people buy bottles and resell them in the neighbourhoods. Two days ago I found someone selling gas for 520 meticais in my neighbourhood, when the real price is 446MT,” one consumer said.

Resellers confirm the shortage and say demand has increased with the price drop, with consignments selling out in just a few hours. With demand so high, most resellers restrict customers to one bottle apiece.

“The demand is so great that some consumers bring more than one empty bottle, but we only sell one bottle per person,” one reseller explained.

It is believed that the problem may be that there is only one refilling site nationally, constraining distribution.

“I get 150 bottles a day, but they sell out in less than three hours. If there were more filling locations in the regions, it would minimise the problem of scarcity,” dealer representative Rodrigo Chin said.

At 1:00 p.m. on Monday, all the points of sale in the capital were out of stock, and the population was left to its fate.

Source: O País