Parliament on Tuesday passed the Energy Regulation (Amendment) Liquid Fuels and Gas (Production and Supply) (Amendment) which area expected to operationalise President Lazarus Chakwera’s directive to transition from an open tender system to a government-to-government procurement system.
The Energy Regulation Bill seeks to amend the Energy Regulation Act (Cap. 73:02) to address challenges identified in the implementation of the Act.
Key amendments include enhanced Ministerial Consultation in which the Minister will be required to consult the Energy Authority when revising any policy on energy.
The Liquid Fuels and Gas Bill aims to amend the Liquid Fuels and Gas (Production and Supply) Act (Cap. 50:03) to address implementation challenges and ensure efficiency, reliability, and transparency in the supply of diesel and petrol.
Key amendments include the introduction of a government-to-government Fuel Supply Arrangement; a new arrangement for the importation of diesel and petrol into Malawi.
These amendments are expected to strengthen Malawi’s energy sector, ensuring a more efficient, reliable, and transparent supply of energy.
However, main opposition Democratic Progressive Party’s Bright Msaka accused government of using amendments to fuel laws to flout the country’s Public Finance Management (PFM) laws.
He was referring to Section 5 (6) of the Liquid Fuels and Gas (Production and Supply) Amendment Bill, which states: “The Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act shall not apply to Government-to-Government fuel supply arrangement.”
In his response to the bill, Msaka said: “The government is creating a crisis to pass laws that will place them above the law. This will place the Minister above the law and create room for public officers to steal.”
