A coal delivery truck driver was arrested at the Camden Power Station after he was found in possession of sub-grade coal destined for Eskom on Tuesday.
Eskom said in a statement that the truck belonged to a transporter contracted to deliver coal to the parastatal. Two other truck drivers were arrested at the same power station while in possession of stolen coal two weeks ago.
According to Eskom, the truck left the mine with the correct specification of coal but it was later swapped with inferior quality coal at a known illegal coal yard in the area, prior to delivery at the Camden Power Station.
During questioning, the truck driver admitted that security officers had allowed him to exit the Wonderfontein Coal Mine without the truck’s tarpaulins being sealed with the prescribed seals. He said the seals had remained in his possession when he exited the mine.
The Bidvest Protea Coin Tactical Task Team, who are contracted to Eskom to investigate coal, diesel and fuel oil theft cases, detected the truck as it left the illegal coal yard in Middelburg. The team followed the truck to the Camden Power Station where it was stopped at the gate. The driver was arrested at the scene.
He alleged that an employee of the mine had instructed him to proceed to the illegal coal yard in Middelburg and to offload the coal before proceeding to Camden Power Station. He was further directed by the employee to deliver the replaced, substandard coal to Eskom. The trailer was sealed at the illegal coal stockyard using the issued seals after the sub-grade coal had been loaded.
In an interesting turn of events, the investigator from Bidvest Protea Coin was offered a R50 000 bribe for the release of the driver when he engaged on the matter.
Eskom general manager for security, Advocate Karen Pillay, welcomed the arrest.
“The arrest of these unscrupulous individuals is a significant step in our fight against crime in Eskom, and we shall continue in our pursuit to ensure that the perpetrators face the full might of the law,” Pillay said.
“The persistent and excellent work by the Eskom Security Team, Bidvest Protea Coin Tactical Task Team, and the South African Police Services (SAPS), who are all working tirelessly to identify and disrupt the criminal networks, are an indication of our determination to root out the criminal elements from Eskom,” she said.
Eskom added that stockpiles of coal destined for power stations from contracted mines were pretested and certified by both parties. It is required that the delivery coal trucks are inspected at source and the trailers are sealed on site for security purposes. The seals are supposed to remain intact until the truck reaches the power station where it is again inspected for tampering before being offloaded.
However, Eskom has discovered that these processes have been deliberately bypassed by criminal elements working in the mines, transport firms and Eskom.
“Eskom continues to lose billions of rands due to the misappropriation of coal and similar commodities, which directly affects production. There are several illicit coal stockyards and dump sites in the province that are recipients of the stolen coal,” the power utility said.
“Eskom will provide the required support to the SAPS and the National Prosecuting Authority to ensure that the suspect/s are successfully prosecuted and that a stiff sanction is meted out as a favourable outcome will serve to deter other would-be offenders.”
Eskom urged the public to report information regarding theft of coal, fuel oil and diesel to the Eskom Crime Line: 0800 11 27 22.
