South Africa proposes to increase strategic oil reserves to address supply risks

south africa plans to increase its strategic oil reserves to address supply risks. the last increase in the country's emergency oil reserves was in the 1970s, when united nations sanctions for the apartheid policy led south africa to build an oil storage facility in the gulf of saldania, which could store 45 million barrels of crude oil off the atlantic coast. in its draft policy issued on 9 july, the ministry of mineral resources and energy of south africa indicated that south africa estimated that an additional 10 million barrels of oil would be required to cover the current stock gap. the document states that the south african national treasury and the national petroleum company will develop financing mechanisms and tools for financing and guaranteeing strategic oil reserves. dmre proposes that the strategic reserve cover 60 days of demand, of which about two thirds are crude oil and the remainder are petroleum products. according to estimates by the united states energy information agency, south africa ' s oil demand is about 600,000 barrels per day, and at this rate the size of this reserve is about 36 million barrels. under the scheme, licensed wholesalers and importers will be required to maintain stocks equivalent to 21 days' demand。