South Africa's state fuel firm PetroSA faces liquidation as

South Africa's state fuel firm PetroSA faces liquidation as botched trades could cost it R1.4bn

A court is weighing insolvency for the Central Energy Fund subsidiary, which owes fuel trader Nako Energy more than R600 million and faces a R620 million claim from creditor Plane Tree.

Source: CAR Magazine South Africa2026-09-181 min read

Wikimedia Commons

PetroSA, South Africa's state-owned fuel group, is fighting for survival in court amid losses that could reach nearly R1.4 billion, according to reporting by the amaBhungane Centre for Investigative Journalism and Business Day.

The trouble traces back to April 2024, when the Central Energy Fund subsidiary bought 50 million litres of diesel from Swiss trader Gunvor to run Eskom's generators during load shedding. With power cuts over by March that year, trader Nako Energy took the diesel at a discount and still owes PetroSA R832 million. A second deal followed: a R605 million petrol cargo delivered in June 2024 that contained 6% N-methylaniline (NMA), an octane-boosting but toxic additive, against a recommended ceiling of 1.2%. The compound causes gum build-up in fuel and damages engines, prompting retailers including Shell, TotalEnergies and Engen to pull the product from their forecourts.

Under a settlement due by the end of May 2025, PetroSA was to buy 11 further cargoes totalling 505 million litres, with the resulting R227 million profit meant to clear its balance with Nako Energy. But Plane Tree, a creditor that took assignment of a 2022 Nako Energy debt in 2023, is now owed R620 million and must be paid first. Should Nako Energy fold, PetroSA would also forfeit its R832 million claim, leaving it roughly R1.4 billion out of pocket. The Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources is due to face Parliament over the company's finances on 22 September.

This is an original summary compiled and translated from the source below, not a direct translation of it.

Source: CAR Magazine South Africa →