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BL Premium reports that South African Petroleum Refineries (Sapref), the largest refinery in Southern Africa, has declared force majeure and closed its doors amid rampant unrest and looting in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).
The notice of force majeure, which refers to unforeseeable circumstances that prevent fulfillment of a contract, was issued to customers late on Tuesday as the unrest in the province persisted. The notice advised as follows: “Due to the civil unrest in the country and disruption of supply routes in and out of KwaZulu-Natal, suppliers of materials critical to Sapref operations communicated the suspension of deliveries to the refinery due to safety concerns for their staff and damages to their vehicles on the roads. Without the said critical materials and with no clarity as to how long the unrest will last and normal supply resume, Sapref is unable to sustain refinery operations. Consequently, Sapref has been obliged to make the difficult decision to shut down the refinery.” The 180,000-barrel-a-day refinery is jointly owned by Shell and BP and is a key supplier of fuel for SA, accounting for 35% of the country’s fuel needs. Panic buying of fuel ensued on Tuesday, with long queues reported at Durban petrol stations as several forecourts ran out of fuel while others were closed.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Lisa Steyn at BusinessLive (paywall access only)
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page