Thieves cause diesel pipeline spill in South Africa
Thieves attempting to steal fuel from a South African pipeline caused a spill of diesel that has leaked into a waterway.
The spillage, caused by tampering with a block-valve chamber, occurred on a multi-product pipeline between the east coast city of Durban and Heidelberg, and was discovered Wednesday morning, Transnet, said in a statement.
Environmental teams are doing their best to contain the contamination from the diesel that flowed into the Meul River, the company said, without specifying how much had poured out.
South Africa is struggling to draw investment for new infrastructure as its existing assets fall victim to vandalism and theft. Stealing of cable from rail lines has surged, causing disruptions to commodity deliveries.
In February, the government said it plans to introduce new laws targeting cable thieves holding the economy to ransom.
It intends to make it mandatory for all metal traders to get licenses and prevent them from dealing in cash, a measure aimed at combating a massive illegal trade in cables and wiring stripped from rail, power and telecommunication lines.
Traders will also be required to conduct due diligence on their customers and track the origins of their products, the National Treasury said in the annual budget review, which was published in Cape Town on Wednesday.
Cable theft and vandalism is undermining the government’s efforts to revive the coronavirus-battered economy by bolstering more infrastructure investment, enhancing the power supply and improving transport links.
Freight rail operator Transnet, telecommunications company Telkom, power utility Eskom Holdings, and the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa estimate that thieves and vandals cost them a total of R7 billion ($459 million) a year.
The knock-on losses to the economy amounted to about R187 billion annually, the companies said in a joint statement last year.
With further reporting by Bloomberg.
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