The Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) revealed the results of extensive monitoring campaigns conducted by the Central Committee for Monitoring Petroleum Products Distribution during April, RT reported on Wednesday.
The campaigns resulted in the detection of manipulation and the attempted theft of massive quantities of fuel, exceeding one million liters, in several Egyptian governorates.
The EGPC used inspection teams in surprise raids across 150 gas stations, while simultaneously maintaining the close monitoring of 540 other stations through dedicated teams.
This was done in coordination with the police and supply directorates in the governorates of Beheira, Alexandria, Sharqiya, Damietta, Assiut, and Aswan, amidst high-level coordination with local authorities to eliminate smuggling networks.
The oversight report included the monitoring of “serious” violations, the biggest being the discovery of closed stations in Cairo that were still receiving their official quotas, and the discovery of secret tanks hidden under concrete layers in Gharbiya Governorate containing 40,000 liters of diesel intended for illegal sale.
The crackdown also extended to the industrial diesel sector, where clandestine storage facilities and illegal handling equipment were found, including hidden pumps and pipelines posing a security and environmental risk.
Additionally, brick factories that had ceased operations were found to be continuing to consume fuel quotas.
Criminal network foiled
The oversight bodies uncovered a criminal network operating within a warehouse in one of the southern governorates.
This network was involved in loading additional quantities of fuel outside the official documentation process.
Suspicious financial transactions linked to the incident were also detected, and the entire case has been referred to the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The authority also warned of fuel safety violations, having detected impurities and water inside the tanks of some stations, which poses a a threat to the engines of citizens’ vehicles.
Authorities quickly shut down the non-compliant fuel dispensers and referred them for legal calibration, while also investigating complaints circulating on social media from the Menoufia governorate.
The crackdown also extended to black market traders in the butane gas sector in Aswan, after the discovery of price manipulation involving 10,000 cylinders intended for domestic use.
