Okaz/Saudi Gazette

RIYADH — The Ministry of Commerce will take punitive measures against owners and operators of gasoline stations, who are involved in fraudulent practices of gasoline adulteration.

The owners of stations that are found to be involved in such commercial fraud will be obliged to tow and repair vehicles of affected consumers, in addition to bearing the costs of transportation and maintenance at their own personal expense.

The ministry, in cooperation with the Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization (SASO), will carry out mandatory checks on petrol stations to protect consumers from such fraudulent practices.

The ministry sources said that the adulterated fuel would be removed and destroyed, and those involved in the fraud will be handed over to the investigation authorities to take legal actions against them.

The punitive measures include fine, closure of the station for one month, in addition to publication of the judgment in a local newspaper at the expense of the violator.

According to experts in the automobile sector, there are three ways to detect adulterated fuel, and these include the appearance of a crackling sound in the engine, which indicates that the fuel is mixed with water; the difference in the color or smell of gasoline, which means it has been mixed with water; and the emission of black smoke from the exhaust pipe, which refers to mixing gasoline 95 octane with gasoline 91 octane.

Some gas stations have resorted to deceiving consumers by mixing gasoline 91 with a dye material to turn it red and sell it as gasoline 95. The ministry inspections have resulted in seizing a number of such cases and legal procedures have been taken against their operators.