Tshwane hit by fuel contamination crisis
Insiders in the metro have described that 93 octane petrol is normally green in colour, however, the current fuel pumped at depots was blue.
Various Tshwane fuel depots in the CBD, Pretoria east and Centurion have been contaminated.
According to sources close to the metro, it almost has no fuel to operate its fleet as its large quantities of fuel are not clean.
The sources said 93 octane petrol is normally green in colour, however, what Tshwane is pumping out of its tanks is blue.
It is suspected paraffin might have been mixed with petrol and diesel, however, the cause is yet to be determined.
The Bella Ombre petrol depot has approximately been out of service for about a month, due to the contamination.
Tshwane staffers have stressed that they cannot see out operations because of the resulting fuel crisis.
They alleged that the situation is dire and Tshwane was failing to be transparent on the extent of the contamination.
According to insiders, depots in Bella Ombre, Waltloo, waste management, Pretorius Park, Akasia, Bon Accord, Centurion, Soshanguve and Hammanskraal have no usable petrol.
Tshwane spokesperson Lindela Mashigo confirmed that four out of 26 metro depots have reported contamination.
“Tshwane has 26 depots, contamination has since been identified at four.”
He said the quantity of the contaminated fuel was still a subject of investigation.
Mashigo said it was the first time such a saga broke out in Tshwane and it was premature to blame the supplier or sabotage as yet.
“The cause is being investigated. We are yet to receive lab results on the tests conducted.”
He said in a bid to ensure operations were not disrupted, depots have been supplied with equipment to test their fuel before use.
“Investigations are in progress to identify the source. Other depots that were not affected by the contamination continue to operate.”
Mashigo said talk of a fuel shortage was also premature because 22 depots were still operative.
“There is no disruption in services as vehicles are rerouted to the said depots [to fill up].”
Tshwane previously said on average, it spent about R4-million a month on diesel.
Financial constraints and fuel theft have previously resulted in Tshwane running out of diesel.
The timeline of the recent fuel crisis:
– On April 6, Tshwane could not run its entire fleet due to a diesel shortage.
– In January, it had to temporarily suspend service due to a fuel shortage.
– Last year September, more than 70 buses were grounded due to fuel a shortage.
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