Matrix Petroleum, which is currently operating in South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe, is hoping to break into the Namibian market in a year or two, as part of its African expansion project.
The Owner of Chief Executive Officer of Matrix Petroleum, Malvin Chiwanga, said the company has identified a huge potential in the Nambian market characterised by high investor appetite and a firm respect for property rights.
If successful, the company aims to deliver 100 million litres of petroleum to Namibia every month from January 2022. The company will also employ about 1,500 people in Namibia of which 700 will be contractors.
Excerpts from the CEO:
“By March 2022 we will be running in excess of 15 countries in Africa. We are very much guided by expectations and feel that our awareness of the cultural differences in each country has given us a commercial advantage. Different markets have different needs and our approach reflects that.”
“Since 2019 our target has been to aggressively grow the business outside of Guernsey by eight to ten times and we aim to accomplish this by 2023, which is where the name ‘EPIC 2019 comes from. We have tripled our income to date and we are on course to meet our target.”
“Since we decided to expand across the sub-Sahara region, we have secured several storages. The second distribution channel is the business-to-business sector, where Matrix has forged strong relationships with a number of industries including airlines, mining and transport companies.”
“Although the company has been experiencing steady growth, the ongoing Covid pandemic and reduced demand for oil worldwide have been some of the major challenges faced by the company.”
“This is definitely a work in progress for us and we often encounter national regulations that determine where we have to source products. We have invested over £14 million in infrastructure and we plan to open a new depot in Namibia, which will significantly increase our capacity to support growth”
“Another challenge is ensuring that we have enough skilled people for an organisation that wants to grow rapidly. Will run in-house training schemes to develop staff with technical skills and we have a targeted personal development programme, which will run alongside a graduate recruitment initiative.”
ABOUT MATRIX PETROLEUM
Matrix Petroleum is a Channel Island company headquartered in Guernsey. It is primarily a petroleum company, operating in 7 countries with additional investments in renewable energy. By revenue, Matrix was ranked by Forbes Magazine Africa 2021 as the African petroleum best company regardless of industry, by profit in the world. The company has about 30,000 employees around the world.