Johannesburg - PetroSA has made an application to the
Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) for a commercial crude oil
allocation, it said on Wednesday.
"We have not yet received any response from the
NNPC," spokesperson Thabo Mabaso said.
Earlier, the Democratic Alliance said PetroSA's attempts to
secure alternative crude oil supply from Nigeria had been unsuccessful.
"The NNPC is of the view that PetroSA's application
should be a 'government to government application', rather than a commercial
one," DA energy spokesperson Jacques Smalle said in a statement.
"We currently import 25% of our crude oil from Iran.
Sanctions against Iran have put South Africa under immense pressure to secure (an) alternative sweet crude oil supply by the end of June."
Smalle said the refineries in the country were ill-equipped
to process heavy-sulphur crude from Saudi Arabia and other oil-producing
nations, and that finding alternative suppliers was difficult.
"If the application for Nigerian crude is not submitted
this week, South Africa's chances of securing a contract will become
increasingly slim," he said.
"If South Africa fails to secure the Nigerian crude
contracts, we face the prospect of becoming reliant on crude oil supply bought
at much higher spot prices. This will likely increase local petrol
prices."
Smalle said the NNPC would award its oil futures contracts
on June 15 and that the country's application should be corrected and, with the
necessary governmental intervention, secured before the end of this week.
The energy department's spokesperson could not be reached for
comment.