Tonnes of diesel shipped out: Diesel smugglers eye overseas marts
Tonnes of diesel shipped out of Subic: Diesel smugglers eye overseas marts
KUALA LUMPUR: Stringent domestic enforcement has forced diesel smuggling syndicates to look for foreign destinations to "export" it.
Following the discovery of 128 subsidised diesel infringement cases during the first eight months of the year, the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry has tightened its screws.
This prompted the smugglers to look at the Philippines and Myanmar where the price of diesel had skyrocketed and tonnes of smuggled diesel have found their way to the depots, a large portion of which was believed to be from Malaysia.
Diesel is sold at RM1.95 per litre in the Philippines and RM1.63 per litre in Myanmar.
Investigations by Malaysian enforcement agencies have unearthed a pattern of subsidised diesel finding its way to the shores of the two countries and this was confirmed when a ship with 275,000 litres of diesel valued at RM500,000 was stopped at the Prai Barter Trade Wharf last Tuesday.
The seizure was the biggest in Penang this year and followed a week of surveillance by 13 officers and personnel from Putrajaya and Penang.
The seizure was positively identified as subsidised diesel, meant for local fishermen, after the Nanotag marker was detected on tested samples.
Nanotag is a special marker added to all subsidised diesel in Malaysia to enable enforcement officers to detect the unauthorised possession of subsidised diesel.
Enforcement officers can take samples and conduct tests for the presence of Nanotag using a special kit. The test is swift and results are obtained in three minutes.
Enforcement agency sources said the lucrative opportunities were among the reasons smugglers were trying to "market" it at the foreign destinations.
Criminal elements were using their network of connections to find ways to get the diesel overseas and this included those involved in the drug trade.
Diesel was smuggled into the Philippines via barges from undisclosed locations along the coastline of Sabah and Sarawak.
Last month, statistics reported in Manila revealed that the Philippines had lost billions in revenue as a result of rampant smuggling of fuel.
As a result, the Philippine government imposed mandatory marking on imported crude and petroleum products from Aug 15.
The Philippines Bureau of Customs adopted the mandatory marking for fuel products including diesel where those imported through the Subic Bay Freeport, Clark Special Economic Zone and Port of Batangas were exempted from duties and taxes.
It had been reported in the Philippine media that authorities unearthed 138 million litres of oil worth three billion pesos (RM225 million) which had been smuggled through the Subic Bay Freeport.
"An undisclosed amount of smuggled oil is believed to have originated from Malaysia as syndicates cash in on rising oil prices in the region," the sources revealed.
In Myanmar, the government responded to a global trend of withdrawing fuel subsidies to deal with the rising cost of oil.
The withdrawal of fuel subsidies resulted in the price of diesel doubling overnight, which led to an increase in diesel smuggling as demand for cheaper fuel rose.
The price of petrol in Myanmar went from 1.5 kyat (82 sen) to 2.5 kyat a gallon while diesel rose from 1.5 kyat to 3 kyat.
In Malaysia, fishermen are entitled to buy diesel at RM1 per litre while those in the river transport industry purchase it at RM1.20 a litre.
Ordinary users purchase diesel at RM1.58 a litre and those with fleetcards such as school bus drivers are entitled to buy diesel at RM1.43 a litre.
However, industrial users such as factories are not entitled to subsidised diesel and have to pay RM1.90 per litre.
"Oil smuggling is not as visible as the smuggling of luxury cars. But the revenue leakage is far greater as the government is subsidising the diesel," the sources added.By : Lee Shi-Ian - New Straight Times
KUALA LUMPUR: Stringent domestic enforcement has forced diesel smuggling syndicates to look for foreign destinations to "export" it.
Following the discovery of 128 subsidised diesel infringement cases during the first eight months of the year, the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry has tightened its screws.
This prompted the smugglers to look at the Philippines and Myanmar where the price of diesel had skyrocketed and tonnes of smuggled diesel have found their way to the depots, a large portion of which was believed to be from Malaysia.
Diesel is sold at RM1.95 per litre in the Philippines and RM1.63 per litre in Myanmar.
Investigations by Malaysian enforcement agencies have unearthed a pattern of subsidised diesel finding its way to the shores of the two countries and this was confirmed when a ship with 275,000 litres of diesel valued at RM500,000 was stopped at the Prai Barter Trade Wharf last Tuesday.
The seizure was the biggest in Penang this year and followed a week of surveillance by 13 officers and personnel from Putrajaya and Penang.
The seizure was positively identified as subsidised diesel, meant for local fishermen, after the Nanotag marker was detected on tested samples.
Nanotag is a special marker added to all subsidised diesel in Malaysia to enable enforcement officers to detect the unauthorised possession of subsidised diesel.
Enforcement officers can take samples and conduct tests for the presence of Nanotag using a special kit. The test is swift and results are obtained in three minutes.
Enforcement agency sources said the lucrative opportunities were among the reasons smugglers were trying to "market" it at the foreign destinations.
Criminal elements were using their network of connections to find ways to get the diesel overseas and this included those involved in the drug trade.
Diesel was smuggled into the Philippines via barges from undisclosed locations along the coastline of Sabah and Sarawak.
Last month, statistics reported in Manila revealed that the Philippines had lost billions in revenue as a result of rampant smuggling of fuel.
As a result, the Philippine government imposed mandatory marking on imported crude and petroleum products from Aug 15.
The Philippines Bureau of Customs adopted the mandatory marking for fuel products including diesel where those imported through the Subic Bay Freeport, Clark Special Economic Zone and Port of Batangas were exempted from duties and taxes.
It had been reported in the Philippine media that authorities unearthed 138 million litres of oil worth three billion pesos (RM225 million) which had been smuggled through the Subic Bay Freeport.
"An undisclosed amount of smuggled oil is believed to have originated from Malaysia as syndicates cash in on rising oil prices in the region," the sources revealed.
In Myanmar, the government responded to a global trend of withdrawing fuel subsidies to deal with the rising cost of oil.
The withdrawal of fuel subsidies resulted in the price of diesel doubling overnight, which led to an increase in diesel smuggling as demand for cheaper fuel rose.
The price of petrol in Myanmar went from 1.5 kyat (82 sen) to 2.5 kyat a gallon while diesel rose from 1.5 kyat to 3 kyat.
In Malaysia, fishermen are entitled to buy diesel at RM1 per litre while those in the river transport industry purchase it at RM1.20 a litre.
Ordinary users purchase diesel at RM1.58 a litre and those with fleetcards such as school bus drivers are entitled to buy diesel at RM1.43 a litre.
However, industrial users such as factories are not entitled to subsidised diesel and have to pay RM1.90 per litre.
"Oil smuggling is not as visible as the smuggling of luxury cars. But the revenue leakage is far greater as the government is subsidising the diesel," the sources added.
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6:50 AM
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