The Managing Director of the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Edwin Provencal has revealed that about Ten (10) Members of Staff from the Kumasi Depot will be sacked if investigations find them culpable in the alleged fuel adulteration at the depot.
Others, he said will face punitive measures going forward. He stated that all those who were on duty at Pump Station One and other vantage points or sections on the day of the incident at the depot are under investigation.
The MD speaking during a stakeholder meeting with transport owners in Accra said management were patiently waiting for the outcome of the investigations and recommendations of same to act.
He told the transport owners that fuel tempering in transit by tanker drivers in the industry is causing the nation several millions of US Dollars. He urgently appealed to the fuel truck owners to immediately take measures to put a stop to this practice or lose their business contracts with BOST.
The Managing Director further disclosed that the National Security is to start monitoring the movement of petroleum products from the company’s depots to stop fuel tempering.
Background
In October this year, the Ashanti regional police command arrested one suspect in connection to the alleged adulteration of fuel loaded from the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) to the Kumasi Bulk Oil storage depot.
The suspects involved in the illegal fuel production include seven other fuel Tanker drivers who are currently at large.
At least about 15 fuel Tankers used for the fake fuel deal have been impounded by the Ashanti regional police command and crime scene experts at the Kumasi Bulk Oil Storage transport depot.
A source at the Kumasi BOST told Starr FM’s Ashanti regional Correspondent Isaac Justice Bediako that, “the driver after loading the fuel from TOR parked at a secret location to offload some quantity of the fuel and mix the remaining fuel with some unknown chemicals for profit.”
Another source said, ”while inspecting the fuel tankers at the security checkpoint before the drivers arrive at the premises to offload the fuel product, we detected that some drivers have adulterated their fuel so we quickly hinted management and police were informed.”
The crime scene experts from the Ashanti regional command made up of six officers have taken one driver who they suspect has adulterated his fuel with unknown chemicals to the Ashanti regional police command to assist police investigations.
While different samples of suspected adulterated fuel have been taken away by the police investigators for laboratory tests.
