Hong Kong saw a “sharp increase” in illegal fuel trading last month, officials told AFP on Friday, as rising global oil prices put pressure on the import-dependent financial centre.
The semi-autonomous city lacks its own refineries and imports its entire auto fuel supply, with most coming from neighboring mainland China.
Prices at Hong Kong gas stations are the most expensive in the world, creating an incentive for smugglers to smuggle cheaper fuel across the border into the city.
Hong Kong fire service officials said they had noticed a “sharp increase in … complaints” about illegal fueling activities, receiving 154 of them in March, about 40 percent more than the average over the previous two months.
Customs authorities seized about 19,500 liters of illegal fuel last month, more than the total amount seized in January and February.
Makeshift gas stations with inadequate facilities are “presenting intolerable risks to public safety,” fire officials said.
Smugglers were increasingly modifying seven-seater cars and light goods vehicles and disguising them for use as mobile fuel stations, they said.
Authorities said they were using robots and X-ray scanners at the border with mainland China to deter smuggling and had deployed aerial drones for surveillance.
The retail price of standard gasoline reached about HK$32.40 (US$4.14) per liter in Hong Kong this week, according to the city’s Consumer Council.
Authorities launched temporary measures on Thursday, including a subsidy for public diesel transport, to cushion the impact of rising fuel costs.
