/ 22 November 2007

Engen: Refinery fire won’t affect fuel supply

Officials at Durban’s Engen refinery on Thursday reiterated that a fire that resulted in millions of rands’ worth of petrol going up in smoke would not have an impact on fuel supply to motorists.

”We don’t believe that this will have any significant impact in the short- or long-term,” Herb Payne, speaking on behalf of Engen general manager Willem Oosthuizen, said on Thursday.

He was responding to reports that service stations inland could run dry over the festive season.

The petrol tank fire at Durban’s Engen Refinery lasted over 57 hours and was finally extinguished on Thursday morning.

”The fire was put out at 4.30am and the all clear alarm was sounded at 6.47am,” Payne said.

It is believed that the fire started when lightning struck Engen’s largest petrol tank on Monday evening. — Sapa