Security company Bidvest Protea Coin has identified 188 possible illegal fuel depots in Gauteng. The company said criminal networks are taking advantage of tax gaps and weak points in the fuel supply chain.
Chief operating officer Waal de Waal shared the figure on the TV programme Carte Blanche. He said the company found the sites through ongoing investigations and assessments based on intelligence.
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) said fuel adulteration costs the fiscus about R3.6 billion a year. SARS said this figure is based on statistics from the International Trade Administration Commission.
Much of the problem involves mixing cheaper illuminating paraffin into diesel. Paraffin is taxed differently from diesel. This gives criminals a money reason to blend the two and sell the mix as normal diesel.
SARS said it has seen a national trend at fuel storage and distribution depots. In some of its cases, diesel was found to contain as much as 68% paraffin.
The revenue service said criminals also try to remove or get around chemical markers. These markers are used to tell legal fuel products apart. Without them, mixed fuel can enter the supply chain and is harder to detect.
SARS said some networks also under-declare fuel imports. Some loads were declared at 40,000 litres or less. Investigations found that as much as 60,000 litres had actually been brought in.
According to SARS, a joint intelligence operation targeted 23 sites across Gauteng, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal. It led to the detention of 953,515 litres of contaminated diesel and six fuel depots that did not comply with the rules.
SARS said assets and contaminated fuel worth about R367.3 million were also held in that operation.
The SARS annual report for 2024/25 recorded a separate scheme of diesel mixed with paraffin. SARS said that scheme caused a R3 billion loss to the fiscus. Assets, equipment and products were detained and criminal cases were opened.
Bidvest Protea Coin said the illegal fuel trade goes beyond mixing. It said networks also use smuggling and under-declaration across the supply chain.
The company said its investigators work with the Hawks, Crime Intelligence, the Asset Forfeiture Unit and the National Prosecuting Authority. It said it uses informants, data analysts, surveillance and aerial tools to spot crime patterns.
Bidvest Protea Coin has called for private security firms, police, regulators and businesses to work more closely together. It said this would help find criminal networks and protect honest operators and consumers.
According to IOL, mixed fuel can affect how an engine runs and can damage vehicles. Legal fuel sellers also face competition from operators who cut costs with illegal or mixed products.
Source: this article is based on reporting by IOL. Image: IOL. Written with the help of AI and published by the Tzaneen Voice Business desk. See our Editorial Standards.
Anelisa Nkuna covers business and money news for Tzaneen Voice. Anelisa reports on the rand, fuel prices, interest rates, jobs, Eskom, Transnet, farming and company results. The aim is simple: explain what the numbers mean for household budgets, small businesses and workers in South Africa.