Parly orders crackdown on rogue fuel suppliers selling dirty diesel

Companies in the fuel industry that are selling contaminated diesel or petrol must be shut down by the government, according to the chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Mineral and Petroleum Resources, Mikateko Mahlaule.

The committee says it requested the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources to close all petrol and diesel stations that have been found to have committed this act.

Last year, the Department identified a number of failed samples of diesel in some of the outlets across the country.

Mahlaule says they are not calling for the companies to be fined but for them to cease operating.

“There is one thing that is troubling us as the committee, the alteration of fuel. It is a concern for us. And we are approaching the department to close those that are doing that, not even fine them, close because they are damaging vehicles or tractors, or whatever is at the receiving end. They are damaging those things, and we are saying it’s unprofessional to do that.”

 Video: MPs assess operations during Aston Energy Refinery oversight visit in Cape Town: Mikateko Mahlaule

The Portfolio Committee on Mineral and Petroleum Resources says it’s concerned about the condition of some of the country’s fuel refineries. The committee is on an oversight visit at the Astron Energy Refinery in Cape Town. They have already visited two other refineries in the country.

Mahlaule says they have identified that the production of high-quality fuels such as petrol and diesel, among others, is currently at its lowest.

“We found that the country’s capacity is at its lowest because some refineries have closed. They are re-purposing their business models, and we are scared. Ordinarily when we were to go to do oversight, we want to understand the work you are doing and we want to push it to do the best. But when we went to Sasol, here and SSF is because we were scared because our refining capacity originally from South Africa is at 35%.”