Rabat – The rights to operate the tanks of the oil refining company “SAMIR” have been entrusted to the National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mining (ONHYM), said a statement from the Ministry of Energy, Mining and Environment.
“In accordance with the government’s request to operate the SAMIR reservoirs in this exceptional situation and after approval of the Commercial Court, it was decided to grant authorization to operate its reservoirs to ONHYM,” the ministry said.
The statement comes in the wake of the remarks of the Minister of Energy, Mining and Environment, Aziz Rabbah before the Committee on Infrastructure, Energy, Mining and Environment at the House of Representatives on Monday, June 1. Rabbah spoke on the impact of the fluctuations in the global hydrocarbon market on the domestic market amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The ONHYM will thus undertake the rental procedures and conduct all operations for the supply and storage of petroleum products in connection with the temporary exploitation of SAMIR’s tanks, in compliance with the Casablanca Commercial Court’s ruling.
“The price of the rental contract will be fixed on the basis of the reference value applied internationally,” underlined the ministry, specifying that the contract will be null and void by the force of law in the event of a transfer or free management of the company.
“These exceptional and circumstantial measures will have a beneficial impact on the company, the hydrocarbon sector, and the supply of the national market,” added the ministry.
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During Monday’s meeting, the minister made a presentation on the current situation of the international petroleum market and its repercussions on the national market. He stressed that his department has taken several proactive measures during the COVID-19 crisis to ensure a “regular and continuous supply” of petroleum products to the national market.
He also noted that Morocco imports oil at MAD 3 ($0.30) per liter, representing 30% of the final sale price. He stressed that this amount is added to the import costs at the level of Moroccan ports, storage and transport costs, distribution and selling costs at the level of service distribution stations, fees and tax costs, in addition to the profit margin at each stage until it is presented for sale in gas stations.
Concerning the fate of the SAMIR refinery, whose activities have been suspended since August 2015, the minister pointed out that the file is “at the hands of the judiciary.” It ruled in favor of the Moroccan government using the SAMIR oil refinery’s tanks on May 14 after the government submitted the request on May 12.
