Zimbabwe’s government has created reserves of ethanol to address any production interruptions during the rainy season, local publication The Chronicle reported last week.

Gloria Magombo, chief executive of Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA), was quoted as saying that there were sufficient stocks that would be released into the market in case of supply shortages.

The measure comes after last year the government was forced to lower its E15 mandatory blending level due to ceaseless rains making it hard for Green Fuel, the only licensed supplier, to harvest its sugarcane fields.

Magombo also said the ethanol blending level currently was E15 and the average rate of ethanol production over the past three months was 6 million litres (1.59 million gallons) a month.

Green Fuel is the operator of the Chisumbanje ethanol plant, which was commissioned in 2011. According to its website, the company currently has more than 3,500 employees.

 

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