Publications
Partners
Durban - Engen Petroleum group has threatened to pull out of
its Durban refinery following pressure from government which wants the plant to
sort out its air pollution problems, The Mercury newspaper reported.
A government delegation led by environmental MEC Lydia
Johnson and eThekwini Municipality mayor James Nxumalo visited the refinery
this week.
The officials served a legal notice on the refinery to clean
up or face prosecution.
The newspaper reported Engen CEO, Ahmad Nazim Salleh, was not
happy with the visit which he believed portrayed his company in bad light.
"If this persists it may well undermine all our efforts
to earn the right to operate the refinery…Do we continue with the refinery as
part our business? This is an option our majority shareholders have been
debating for a while and is receiving careful consideration," the paper
quoted Salleh as saying in an internal communication.
The government delegation visited the refinery following a
number fires and explosions.
Last month, a section of the refinery caught fire, forcing the company to evacuate staff. The refinery processes 30% of South Africa's liquid fuels.
