23 companies under the aegis of the state-owned Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) group have sold nearly 565,000 tonnes of used lubricant and hundreds of tonnes of toxic waste, seriously violating environmental laws, reported the Environment Police Agency.

A transformer station of EVN.

According to Tien Phong Daily, the Environment Police Agency is investigating the 23 subsidiaries of the EVN for violations which date back many years.

It has been reported that the Electric Testing Centre under the HCM City Power Company, which was involved in the electric meter scandal a few years ago, auctioned off nearly 120,000l of used lubricant at the starting price of over 2.8 billion dong. The Green Environment Company based in HCM City’s Le Minh Xuan Industrial Zone won the bid at nearly 3 billion dong.

The Hau Giang Provincial Power Company also sold over 3,300l of used lubricant. Other power companies like the Power Company 2, Phu My Power One-member Limited company, Power Transmission Company 4, the Southern Power Work Management Board are also reported to have sold used lubricant, breaching regulations on toxic waste management promulgated by EVN.

Over 500,000l of the used lubricants reportedly sold by EVN subsidiaries contain Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), which can cause cancer as well as birth defects. The government defines PCBs as highly toxic waste.

VietNamNet/TP