South Africa has unveiled plans to increase its strategic petroleum reserves to about 36 million barrels, marking a major shift in its energy security strategy more than five decades after the apartheid era.
The proposal was outlined in a draft Strategic Petroleum Stocks Policy released by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) for public consultation.
The move follows heightened concerns over global oil supply disruptions caused by recent tensions involving Iran and the United States, which pushed international crude oil prices higher and slowed shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s busiest oil transit routes.
According to the draft policy, the initiative is designed to reduce South Africa’s vulnerability to international supply disruptions, volatile oil prices and geopolitical instability.
“As a net importer of crude oil and increasingly refined products, the country remains vulnerable to international supply chain disruptions, price volatility, and geopolitical shifts. This Strategic Petroleum Stocks Policy establishes a robust framework for the mandatory holding of emergency reserves to insulate the South African economy,” the policy stated.
Under the proposal, South Africa aims to maintain emergency petroleum reserves equivalent to 60 days of national demand, with roughly two-thirds stored as crude oil and the remainder as refined petroleum products.
The government said it is working with the National Treasury and the state-owned South African National Petroleum Company to establish financing mechanisms for acquiring and maintaining the reserves.
“The National Treasury and the state-owned South African National Petroleum Co. will develop financing mechanisms and instruments for the financing and guaranteeing strategic petroleum stocks,” the DMRE said.
The draft policy noted that South Africa consumes about 27 billion litres of petroleum products each year, while nearly 90 per cent of the transport sector depends on liquid fuels.
Officials warned that any prolonged disruption to fuel supplies could have severe economic consequences and trigger widespread social disruption.
In addition to government-owned emergency reserves, the policy proposes that licensed fuel manufacturers and wholesalers maintain an extra 14 days of refined petroleum stocks, including petrol, diesel and jet fuel.
“The policy introduces a mandatory obligation for licensed manufacturers and wholesalers to maintain an additional 14 days of refined product stocks, such as diesel, petrol and jet fuel,” the draft policy stated.
The government said the combined approach would allow state-owned reserves to provide long-term energy security, while mandatory private-sector inventories would strengthen short-term supply resilience during global supply shocks.
South Africa remains heavily dependent on imported petroleum products, unlike Nigeria, where reliance on imported petrol has fallen following increased production from the Dangote Refinery.
