Fuel shortages get worse

The crippling fuel strike is fast worsening as negotiations stall, petrol stations run dry and synthetic fuel producer Sasol faces industrial action.

Compounding the problem is the fact that millions of pupils countrywide return to school today, raising the prospect of buses and taxis running out of fuel.

The Fuel Retailers Association, which represents filling stations across the country, said the supply of fuel to petrol sites was worse yesterday, and that townships in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal remained the worst hit.

Some 70000 Chemical, Energy, Paper, Printing, Wood and Allied Workers' Union members have been on a wage strike since last Monday. A tough week is expected should negotiators fail to step on the gas because:

• Trade Union Solidarity - which has 6000 employees at PetroSA in Mossel Bay and at Sasol in Secunda - also goes on strike today. Sasol which, according to the SA Petroleum Industry Association, supplies petrol to "most if not all companies in the fuel industry", could be forced to shut down its Secunda operation. Inland filling stations are expected to be most affected.
• More than 300 stations in Gauteng are reportedly dry, and about 60 in KwaZulu-Natal are struggling to get supplies of petrol;
• The SA National Taxi Council says it will lose R2-million a day from tomorrow should the strike continue; and
• The SA Chamber of Commerce and Industry expects productivity levels to be affected, with people likely to struggle to get to work.