The illegal fuel trade has returned to Bulawayo's streets. Dealers sell smuggled petrol and diesel from South Africa and Botswana. These sellers claim their fuel works better than legal blended fuel.
The Zimbabwe government made a rule in August. All fuel must mix with ethanol before anyone can sell it. This includes what some stations called "unleaded fuel."
Energy Minister Edgar Moyo talked about these rules. He said his team worked with Zimbabwe's energy authority to make them.
The Chronicle newspaper found fuel sellers working in many parts of the city. They sell what they say is pure unleaded fuel. Many people buy it because they think it runs longer and keeps engines safe.
Near the Rio Turn bus stop on Luveve Road, sellers work from a black van. They keep many 20-liter fuel containers. A news team watched for half an hour. Five buses stopped to buy fuel at this street spot.
The sellers work at several places. They sell at busy corners in Emakhandeni, Mpopoma, and Nketa 6. They do business during the day. They charge $7.50 for diesel and $6.50 for petrol per five liters. Regular stations charge $1.55 for diesel and $1.53 for petrol per liter. Bus drivers like buying the illegal fuel.
Zimbabwe stopped using leaded petrol back in 2006. The country started mixing fuel with ethanol in 2011 to help the environment. Some drivers wrongly thought mixed fuel hurt their cars. Some sellers tried to trick the rules by calling their fuel "unleaded," but all petrol was already unleaded. The government fixed this problem.
The country chose mixed fuel for good reasons. It cuts down on buying foreign oil. It makes less pollution. It helps sugar farmers sell more crops. It makes more jobs. The sugar plants used for fuel help clean the air as they grow.
Minister Moyo talked to Parliament about the fuel ban. He said some people lied about selling pure fuel. They mixed it themselves. This hurt cars when drivers thought they bought pure fuel. The new rules help drivers know what they buy.
The Zimbabwe government made a rule in August. All fuel must mix with ethanol before anyone can sell it. This includes what some stations called "unleaded fuel."
Energy Minister Edgar Moyo talked about these rules. He said his team worked with Zimbabwe's energy authority to make them.
The Chronicle newspaper found fuel sellers working in many parts of the city. They sell what they say is pure unleaded fuel. Many people buy it because they think it runs longer and keeps engines safe.
Near the Rio Turn bus stop on Luveve Road, sellers work from a black van. They keep many 20-liter fuel containers. A news team watched for half an hour. Five buses stopped to buy fuel at this street spot.
The sellers work at several places. They sell at busy corners in Emakhandeni, Mpopoma, and Nketa 6. They do business during the day. They charge $7.50 for diesel and $6.50 for petrol per five liters. Regular stations charge $1.55 for diesel and $1.53 for petrol per liter. Bus drivers like buying the illegal fuel.
Zimbabwe stopped using leaded petrol back in 2006. The country started mixing fuel with ethanol in 2011 to help the environment. Some drivers wrongly thought mixed fuel hurt their cars. Some sellers tried to trick the rules by calling their fuel "unleaded," but all petrol was already unleaded. The government fixed this problem.
The country chose mixed fuel for good reasons. It cuts down on buying foreign oil. It makes less pollution. It helps sugar farmers sell more crops. It makes more jobs. The sugar plants used for fuel help clean the air as they grow.
Minister Moyo talked to Parliament about the fuel ban. He said some people lied about selling pure fuel. They mixed it themselves. This hurt cars when drivers thought they bought pure fuel. The new rules help drivers know what they buy.
