Government buys stake in Angolan Oil Refinery

Zambia plans to import fuel from neighbouring Angola in order to lower pump prices.

President Hichilema has recently completed a three day visit to Angola during which it was agreed the government would invest in Angola’s Lobito refinery in Benguela province.

Concluding the trip, Hichilema emphasised his desire to have regional economic partners in order to foster cooperation and reduce international costs. “It makes no sense to import fueld from other parts of the world when we have a neighbouring producer,” Hichilema emphasised.

“I don’t know how we have managed to maintain this situation of buying fuel from Saudi Arabia and other parts of the world and not from our neighbour”, he added.

Angola and Zambia are also conducting a study into the feasibility of an oil pipeline from the Lobito refinery to Lusaka. Construction of the refinery is set to conclude in 2026. The refinery is projected to produce up to 200,000 barrels of oil per day when completed.

"It is very natural that Zambia, as our neighbour, has a great interest in acquiring these fuels in Angola, in the neighbouring country, especially when Angola has a greater capacity to refine the crude oil it extracts," President Lourenço said.

During the trip, President Hichilema was keen to emphasise the investment opportunities available in Zambia. He expressed particular pleasure in the news that, once completed, the Lobito Atlantic Railway, a Government of Angola project, will facilitate trade and transport through the Lobito corridor and into Zambia.