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Citgo Petroleum Corp. and Florida officials have warned that fuel sold at stations supplied by Citgo’s Tampa, Fla. terminal may be “contaminated,” complicating efforts by citizens preparing for a hurricane expected to reach the Gulf Coast later this week.
“It’s certainly not a good time for this to happen,” especially ahead of Tropical Storm Idalia,” Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, told MarketWatch. Tampa is a very large port, he said. It takes in a lot of products for the state of Florida so “it’s a big headache.”
What happened?
In a press release dated late Sunday afternoon, Citgo said it discovered “contaminated product” at its Tampa, Fla. terminal on Saturday as a result of “a product routing issue.”
It also said that all Citgo marketers who “lifted gasoline and diesel from the terminal between 8 a.m. and 2 pm local time have been notified and asked to stop sales. Citgo said a “limited number of retail locations are affected” and was working to remove the product from the retail locations that received it.
Separately, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) said Sunday that it identified a “potentially widespread fuel contamination caused by human error at the Port of Tampa.”
It posted a list of potentially impacted stations on X, and warned that any fuel purchased after 10 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 26 from those stations has a “strong likelihood of being contaminated” with diesel fuel.
Rarity
De Haan said situations like this have happened in the past, but are “very rare.”
It’s problematic for the retailer that sold that contaminated fuel, but generally the gas station, Citgo, will be “liable,” meaning if anyone needs repairs, those repairs will be covered, he said.
The good news is that once the contaminated fuel is collected, “it can be essentially re-separated into usable products,” said De Haan. “So it’s not like they’re just going to be taking the fuel and throwing it out. They will be essentially re-refining it.”
What happens to my car?
If your vehicle is affected by the contaminated fuel, it may experience some engine issues, depending on how contaminated the fuel is, said De Haan.
We don’t know the ratio of contamination — whether it was 100% diesel fuel or simply contaminated with diesel but “people will generally notice engine issues, drivability issues because of the contaminated fuel,” he said.
He said those impacted should stop driving immediately and look into having the vehicle towed to a mechanic. The mechanic may decide to drain the tank but generally, it “should not be a catastrophic issue.” It certainly is a “very significant inconvenience.”
The FDACS has opened a consumer hotline to receive complaints from impacted consumers. Those who believe they were sold contaminated gasoline may file a complaint by calling 1-800-HELP-FLA, or go online at fdacs.gov.
Citgo, meanwhile, has said that consumers who believe they purchased contaminated fuel on or after Saturday, Aug. 26, can initiate a claim through its Citgo Good Gas Guarantee program at https://www.citgo.com/contact-us.
Bad timing
The contaminated fuel issue couldn’t have come at a worse time.
A lot of people may be evacuating the area so it’s certainly not a good thing, said De Haan.
As of Monday morning the center of Tropical Storm Idalia was forecast to move over the extreme southeastern Gulf of Mexico by early Tuesday and reach the Gulf Coast of Florida on Wednesday, according to the National Hurricane Center. The storm is forecast to become a hurricane later Monday and become a “dangerous major hurricane” over the northeastern Gulf of Mexico by early Wednesday.
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