Namibia has selected TotalEnergies bidding group to supply the country's bulk diesel and petrol needs for a three-month period from November to January, energy minister Modestus Amutse said late on Monday.
The Southern African country earlier in September said it would not renew an exclusive fuel supply agreement with global commodities trader Vitol after extending it through October.
The new deal involves the supply of approximately 345 million liters of fuel in total, comprising mainly diesel.
The winning bid offered an average discount of 63.85 cents on every liter and a saving of approximately 220.5 million Namibian dollars ($13.57 million), Minister of Industries, Mines and Energy Amutse said.
The main fuel suppliers in Namibia are national oil company Namcor, TotalEnergies, Vitol's Vivo Energy, Trafigura's Puma and newcomer Nasan Energies.
"The ministry will continue to use open competition to buy the country's fuel on the best possible terms without ever putting security of supply at risk," Amutse said in a recorded video message.
TotalEnergies is negotiating fiscal stability terms with Namibia's government ahead of a final investment decision for its Venus offshore project as the country aims for its first oil production by 2030.
($1 = 16.2503 Namibian dollars)
(Reuters - Reporting by Nyasha Nyaungwa and Wendell Roelf; editing by Cynthia Osterman)