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  #1  
Old 15 Dec 2014
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Petrol in Mauritania
Would I be correct in thinking that all petrol from a fuel station in Mauritania will be unleaded now?

Nick
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Old 15 Dec 2014
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Yes, most of it also lacks octane !!!!
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Old 15 Dec 2014
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Yes, it will be unleaded, I was there last month. Don't rely on getting petrol in the garage half way between the two cities. On my way south it had petrol but none on the way north. Also many garages in Nouakchott did not have petrol, only diesel. I also noticed the bike needed an extra rotation to start when running in Mauritanian petrol.
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Old 15 Dec 2014
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bikerden View Post
Yes, most of it also lacks octane !!!!
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Originally Posted by Jim Lad View Post
Yes, it will be unleaded, I was there last month. Don't rely on getting petrol in the garage half way between the two cities. On my way south it had petrol but none on the way north. Also many garages in Nouakchott did not have petrol, only diesel. I also noticed the bike needed an extra rotation to start when running in Mauritanian petrol.
Thanks guys!

Nick
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Old 15 Dec 2014
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When you find petrol, it will be unleaded.

Problem is, almost everything runs on diesel. It was very hard to find gasoline in many places. One way or another, if you plan on exploring Mauritania you should have 500km of fuel range (not including off-road Saharan routes). Mauritania was the only place in West Africa where I had concerns about fuel range.

For example Akjoujt (between Noakchott and Atar) looks sizable on the map but had no petrol at any of the stations. Ayoun El Artous was another surprise, a large town with no petrol when I went through. They said I should have gotten some in the little town of Tintane 60km earlier. If the stations don't have any, normally somebody will know somebody who will sell you some, but only at 3x the normal price and may involve a few hours of waiting around.
Last edited by jordan325ic; 16 Dec 2014 at 18:09. Reason: I wrote "between Noakchott and DAKAR", re-reading, I meant Atar
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Old 15 Dec 2014
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Originally Posted by jordan325ic View Post
When you find petrol, it will be unleaded.

Problem is, almost everything runs on diesel. It was very hard to find gasoline in many places. One way or another, if you plan on exploring Mauritania you should have 500km of fuel range (not including off-road Saharan routes). Mauritania was the only place in West Africa where I had concerns about fuel range.

For example Akjoujt (between Noakchott and Dakar) looks sizable on the map but had no petrol at any of the stations. Ayoun El Artous was another surprise, a large town with no petrol when I went through. They said I should have gotten some in the little town of Tintane 60km earlier. If the stations don't have any, normally somebody will know somebody who will sell you some, but only at 3x the normal price and may involve a few hours of waiting around.
Thanks for the heads up! I've got a petrol Jeep Wrangler that I'm hoping to explore parts of NW Mauritania. On my previous ventures into Morocco and Western Sahara petrol has never been a concern but I know Maur is not so easy. I reckon I'd be pushing after 500 miles so 500 Km is ok as long as I can find a decent quantities now and again.

I know a diesel 4x4 would be a lot more sensible, but I like the Rubicon......
Nick
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Old 16 Dec 2014
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Originally Posted by PYM 808 View Post
Would I be correct in thinking that all petrol from a fuel station in Mauritania will be unleaded now?
Yes but remember most of the petrol stations specialy on your way east dont have any petrol as diesel is much more comon in Mauretaina:

http://afrikamotorrad.eu/?report=en_westkueste
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Old 17 Dec 2014
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Interesting to read those replies. In all my trips through Mauritania I've never once had a problem getting petrol. Certainly the odd station in Nouakchott was dry but there are now so many petrol outlets its never been a problem.
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Old 17 Dec 2014
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Originally Posted by bikerden View Post
Interesting to read those replies. In all my trips through Mauritania I've never once had a problem getting petrol. Certainly the odd station in Nouakchott was dry but there are now so many petrol outlets its never been a problem.
Dennis, last month I visited about 8 stations in Nouakchott before finding one with petrol on my way to Rosso and of course the station between the cities had no petrol on my return north. Not sure if this is normal or worse than before but was my experience.
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Old 18 Dec 2014
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Its not uncommon for there to be a lack of petrol or diesel in RIM, we had long line ups for diesel in 2003/2004 and petrol was not easy to get hold of - even for the locals.

RIM has modest oil reserves with the Chinguetti offshore oil fields, they have had geological issues with mining the oil, demand is possibly outstripping production, although they can produce 20-30,000 barrells a day. Im not sure if they refine the oil in Nouakchott or if ts done offshore, it could also be that lack of investment is limiting production. As a nation they only import $800,00 USD of POL products/year.

Corruption and mismanagement has been rife over the years with RIM's mineral assets:

BBC NEWS | Business | Mauritania and firm row over oil
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