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‘Ghost oil’ stations earn ‘HK$10,000 a day’ in Hong Kong as petrol prices soar

Operators of illicit fuel stations can earn as much as HK$10,000 (US$1,280) a day by smuggling untaxed petrol into Hong Kong using vehicles equipped with…

By Samantha Johnson / March 21, 2026
Operators of illicit fuel stations can earn as much as HK$10,000 (US$1,280) a day by smuggling untaxed petrol into Hong Kong using vehicles equipped with enlarged tanks and selling it to car club members via coded messages, the South China Morning Post has learned.
A source said there had been more cases involving illicit fuel or “ghost oil” in the city since late February, when petrol prices began to soar following US-Israel strikes on Iran.
The source said law enforcement raids usually discovered trucks equipped with enlarged tanks filled with untaxed fuel from mainland China, vehicles acting as mobile stations carrying untaxed petrol, and fixed illicit filling stations.

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Fixed stations were usually hidden in sheds in remote areas, the source said. Operators would offload the illicit fuel from their vehicles into barrels at the site for patrons or fill up other vehicles acting as mobile stations elsewhere.

“There are transit points for the fuel to be distributed to other areas,” the source said.

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Illicit filling stations could earn up to HK$10,000 per day, according to the source, as they profited from price differences between local taxed petrol and lower-priced options on the mainland.

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