For the past week, East London paraffin tanks have run dry and residents have been struggling to get the fuel due to an annual closure of one of the five petroleum refineries in the country.
Operations manager at Vukani Petroleum, an independent non-refining wholesaler, Brett Edmunds, said the shortage of paraffin was caused by the closure of the Sapref refinery in Durban.
“This is a problem we experience annually when the refinery closes for their maintenance, which always takes place in June, when there is a demand for paraffin.”
Edmunds said the demand for paraffin escalated during the winter season as more people used paraffin heaters to keep warm.
Edmunds said the closure of the Engen refinery for maintenance was also a contributing factor.
Engen spokeswoman Cindy-Lee Maneveld could not confirm the closure of the refinery at the time of writing yesterday.
Director of the South African Petroleum Retailers’ Association Bakang Moeketsi said she was unaware of the plight of paraffin.
Head of supply at the South African Petroleum Industry Association, Siganeko Magafela, confirmed there was a shortage of supply this week.
“We have established there was a shortage of paraffin this week due to abnormal sales, which were not forecast. East London is supplied via ships from Mossel Bay and Durban and the longer lead times made it impossible to replenish the stock quickly enough to meet the increase in demand.”
“There is a ship scheduled to arrive on Saturday to deliver more paraffin in East London,” said Magafela.
Magafela was adamant the Sapref refinery shut down for maintenance had no impact on stock availability because imports and the Mossel Bay refinery was used as a supply point.
Big Daddy’s Wholesalers in Wilsonia, which supplies spaza shops with paraffin, had been without paraffin for over a week.
A notice at the store said the shortage was caused by a fire at one of the depots.
Yesterday, when the Daily Dispatch arrived at the store, customers were there in their numbers to get paraffin which had only been available on Wednesday.
Nomnikelo Pahla, who was among the customers queuing for paraffin at the wholesaler, said the lack of paraffin was an inconvenience to her family.
“We use paraffin to cook and for our heater on cold days, and we have been struggling for the past week,” she said.
Shortage of fuel keeps woolies on
Operations manager at Vukani Petroleum, an independent non-refining wholesaler, Brett Edmunds, said the shortage of paraffin was caused by the closure of the Sapref refinery in Durban.
“This is a problem we experience annually when the refinery closes for their maintenance, which always takes place in June, when there is a demand for paraffin.”
Edmunds said the demand for paraffin escalated during the winter season as more people used paraffin heaters to keep warm.
Edmunds said the closure of the Engen refinery for maintenance was also a contributing factor.
Engen spokeswoman Cindy-Lee Maneveld could not confirm the closure of the refinery at the time of writing yesterday.
Director of the South African Petroleum Retailers’ Association Bakang Moeketsi said she was unaware of the plight of paraffin.
Head of supply at the South African Petroleum Industry Association, Siganeko Magafela, confirmed there was a shortage of supply this week.
“We have established there was a shortage of paraffin this week due to abnormal sales, which were not forecast. East London is supplied via ships from Mossel Bay and Durban and the longer lead times made it impossible to replenish the stock quickly enough to meet the increase in demand.”
“There is a ship scheduled to arrive on Saturday to deliver more paraffin in East London,” said Magafela.
Magafela was adamant the Sapref refinery shut down for maintenance had no impact on stock availability because imports and the Mossel Bay refinery was used as a supply point.
Big Daddy’s Wholesalers in Wilsonia, which supplies spaza shops with paraffin, had been without paraffin for over a week.
A notice at the store said the shortage was caused by a fire at one of the depots.
Yesterday, when the Daily Dispatch arrived at the store, customers were there in their numbers to get paraffin which had only been available on Wednesday.
Nomnikelo Pahla, who was among the customers queuing for paraffin at the wholesaler, said the lack of paraffin was an inconvenience to her family.
“We use paraffin to cook and for our heater on cold days, and we have been struggling for the past week,” she said.
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