Water in PetroChina diesel 40 times over national standard  

中石油柴油掺水超标40倍 回应称影响不好别报道

(ECNS) -- Diesel fuel sold at a PetroChina gas station in Heilongjiang province has been exposed for exceeding the national standard for water content, the Beijing News reported on Monday.

The gas station is located in Weihe town, Shangzhi city, Harbin.

A driver surnamed Gao said he spent 1,900 yuan ($314.2) to refuel his car with zero-grade diesel at the station last October. His car broke down after only 130 kilometers.

Gao had extensive maintenance done to his car before mechanics advised him that there might be something wrong with the diesel fuel he had used.

Using an oil-water separator, the mechanics found four to five kilograms of water in the diesel in Gao's vehicle.

"I spent 25,800 yuan repairing the car," Gao said. "My friends told me their cars also broke down after refueling at the same gas station."

Gao reported the case to the industrial and commercial bureau in Shangzhi city.

A person in charge of the bureau went to the gas station to investigate. Because the zero-grade diesel was sold out at the station, the official took samples of another type of diesel.

Research results showed that moisture content in the sample reached 0.2 percent, 40 times higher than the national standard, which requires that the water content of diesel should never be more than 0.005 percent.

Meanwhile, a CCTV reporter has said that a director at PetroChina's sales department in Shangzhi city demanded that he not report the case, as it "would have a negative influence on the company."

An official at the industrial and commercial bureau in Shangzhi responded that because the case was sensitive, the bureau had reported it to a higher level department, the industrial and commercial bureau in Harbin.