Fuel Shortages 'highly exaggerated'

Reports in the SA press that
filling stations in Gauteng and
KwaZulu Natal were likely to
be running dry of petrol and
diesel due to a fuel shortage
appear to be more journalistic
exaggeration than reality.
According to FTW sources,
while the two provinces are
not exactly flooded with
fuel supplies, nobody in the
road transport industry had
any complaints about diesel
supplies drying up.
The Fuel Retailers'
Association (FRA) CEO
Reggie Sibiya said early last
week that BP service stations
has been the worst affected
and both the Alrode and
Langlaagte depots had, on
more than one occasion, run
out of these products.
But, by the weekend, still
no reports had appeared
of empty fuel pumps.
This was despite Sibiya
being insistent that he had
reports of over 100 service
stations running dry of one or
more products.
The shortage was mainly
attributed to a planned
shutdown at the Engen
Refinery (Enref) in Durban,
leading to product shortages
via pipeline from the coast
to inland, according to
Sibiya. And, while he added
that production disruptions
had occurred at Durban’s
SA Petroleum Refineries
(Sapref), a spokesman for
the SA Petroleum Industry
Association (Sapia) in KZN
was quoted saying the
refinery was “fully online
and producing petroleum
products”.
And, when FTW talked to
road transporters in the two
provinces, nobody claimed
to have suffered any diesel
shortages last week.
Garth Bolton, joint CEO
of Johannesburg-based
Cargo Carriers, admitted
he’d heard the story of the
refinery shutdown supposedly
causing supply shortages. But
his operation had nothing to
report about any diesel shortsupply.
He also suspected that any
shortages would most likely be
attributable to panic buying.
And that service stations
running dry would probably
be more prevalent in rural
districts where fuel suppliers
were small in numbers, and
stocks limited.
Husain Dux, in charge
of fuel supplies at Durban’s
Freightliner Transport, one of
the major short-haul container
transporters, agreed with
that last comment. “Petrol
shortages are only likely in
outlying areas,” he told FTW.
“Diesel supplies might
be tight, with deliveries not
coming as often and not filling
right up, but there’s enough to
serve the market.”
And he pointed out that
diesel supplies were not purely
dependent on the Durban
refineries. “It’s not just supplies
of crude oil that come into
the Port of Durban,” he said.
“Tankers have also been calling
for years, carrying refined
diesel.”
Gavin Kelly, technical and
operations manager of the
truckers’ body the Road Freight
Association (RFA), said he’d
heard no reports of diesel
shortages in Gauteng or KZN.
“I’ve heard all sorts of stories,
but haven’t seen any road
transporters run dry of diesel,”
he said.
“There have been places
where they’ve run out of petrol,
but only because of panic
buying.”
He also
noted that
fuel depots
seemed to
have enough
fuel, and
that fuel
deliveries
were being
made.
“And guys
are more
ready for
situations like
this these days,
and have alternative
plans in place.”