Cape Town - South Africa could get oil at a discounted price after Energy Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson has finalised discussions with the government of Iran.
This announcement came in the wake of Joemat-Pettersson’s visit last week to the Islamic Republic where she was part of a ministerial delegation accompanying President Jacob Zuma on a state visit.
Iran had been slammed with sanctions by the UN for years, but recently the world body lifted the sanctions against Iran following the election of the reformist government of Hassan Rouhani.
In an interview with Independent Media at her offices in Cape Town this week, Joemat-Pettersson described the pending deal with the Iranians as important for South Africa.
She said the negotiations between the two countries were at a sensitive stage and added that if South Africa struck a deal with Iran, it could lead to cheaper oil for the country and less pressure on consumers.
They are under pressure if the oil price goes up because food prices soar.
“On the Iran trip, we were negotiating the official selling price for crude oil. We have not made any deals, I have not signed any deal with Iran,” said Joemat-Pettersson.
“We simply went there to negotiate the price of oil. The price must be competitive, and if it is competitive we will be able to buy oil from Iran,” she pointed out. She described the relations between Iran and South Africa as “beyond bilateral trade relations”.
This is in light of the fact that Iran supported South Africa during the Struggle.
She said they were looking at oil prices with the government of Iran that would benefit both South African consumers and businesses.
“We want to keep the price as low as possible. We are looking for a discounted price which will keep the price low in South Africa,” she said.
“The South African government is looking forward to renewed crude oil trade between South Africa and Iran.
“We are negotiating a crude oil allocation which will be beneficial to the South African market and the businesses,” she said. They wanted a commercial transaction that was beneficial to the South African government, she added.
Iran has had booming business in recent months after the lifting of the UN sanctions, with even American companies flocking to the country.
The US is one of the major trading countries in the world and the sanctions imposed on Iran hit the country very hard.
On his visit, Zuma called for South African companies to take up business opportunities in Iran. Other than ministers, Zuma was accompanied by a large business delegation. He said the business opportunities available in Iran would uplift the South African economy.
Joemat-Pettersson also said they were looking for joint gas ventures with the Strategic Fuel Fund (SFF).
The government was also seeking partnerships to build refineries at Ngqura in the Eastern Cape. She said they wanted to do joint refineries with the SFF and that South Africa wanted to increase its strategic stock.