Namibia secures major fuel cost savings with TotalEnergies deal
Namibia’s Ministry of Industries, Mines and Energy has selected TotalEnergies as the exclusive provider for bulk imports of petrol and diesel during the November 2026 to January 2027 quarter. The designation follows the completion of an open, competitive bidding process under request for proposals BPIC-RFP 01/2026, which coordinates the country’s national fuel imports. TotalEnergies’ trading arm, TOTSA, will execute the supply agreement, Minister Modestus Amutse announced Monday evening.
Under the three-month contract, the group is tasked with importing approximately 345.3 million litres of fuel to meet national demand. The allocation includes roughly 246.9 million litres of diesel and 98.4 million litres of petrol.“For years, Namibia paid more than the Basic Fuel Price (“BFP”), the official reference price for imported fuel, to have its fuel supplied: suppliers charged a premium on top of that benchmark. In the last supply round, the Ministry removed that premium entirely: fuel was supplied at the BFP itself, with nothing added,” he noted.
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According to Amutse, this round, the ministry has gone a step further.“All four companies that submitted bids offered to supply at a discount to the BFP. Not a single bidder asked for a premium. In short, the price of supplying Namibia’s fuel has moved from a premium to the benchmark, and now to below the benchmark. The winning bid offers a discount of 61 cents per litre on diesel and 71 cents per litre on petrol. Taking the two fuels together in the volumes we import, that is an average discount of 63.85 cents on every litre,” he said. Amutse said over the three months, it amounts to a saving of approximately N$220.5 million compared with the current arrangement.
Meanwhile, the Minister said the bids were judged on clear, published criteria: whether the bidder qualified; the price offered; the risk to the country’s fuel supply; and the standing and track record of each supplier.
