By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) said on Saturday, after discussions on Friday with fuel suppliers and airlines regarding fuel supply shortages at Cape Town International Airport, airlines have been allocated fuel for the next few days
The impact on flights was currently likely to be minimal, ACSA said, but advised travellers to keep a close eye on flight schedules.
The largest supplier of jet fuel had been unable to meet demand as a result of technical issues caused by load shedding. ACSA sent a notice in this regard to airmen on Friday afternoon.
“Airports Company South Africa can confirm that discussions were held with fuel suppliers and airlines until late last night (Friday, 3 March 2023), when airlines were given their allocation of JET for the next few days,” it said.
“Given the reduction in supply, a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) was published at 5 am this morning to request airlines to engage their suppliers and to limit uplift where required. Our fuel suppliers are closely engaging impacted airlines to reduce operational impact.”
ACSA, which provides the fuel depot and storage tank facilities that fuel suppliers use to provide fuel to the airlines, added that it was facilitating talks between fuel suppliers, airlines and other stakeholders to ensure there was enough fuel stock to prevent service interruptions.