Footage of an alleged illegal gas-filling activity at a plant in Luqa has raised a number of safety concerns, with a former Enemalta chairman describing the filmed facility as “improvised” and “amateurish”.

In the footage, which is currently at the centre of a legal dispute between two energy companies, gas cylinders can be seen being filled by hand in what looks like a makeshift structure.

Parts of this footage are being published today by timesofmalta.com for the first time, but this newspaper has been granted access to the unedited version.

The “video evidence” shot last November was presented by Liquigas as “proof” that rival company Easygas was illegally filling Liquigas gas cylinders at its plant in Luqa.

A copy of this footage was presented to the police, the Malta Resources Authority and the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority following a judicial protest filed on December 18.

At one point a plume of gas was seen coming out as the pipe was not properly inserted

Subsequently, Liquigas also filed a court case seeking damages from Easygas and the two distributors allegedly filmed taking part in this activity.

Although the police opened an investigation, it has not been established yet if it was concluded or whether they would press any charges.

Meanwhile, last month the Malta Resources Authority granted a temporary licence to Easygas, but only to be able to test the equipment.

Following a story published by Times of Malta, in which the energy regulator said no evidence of illegal gas filling was found at the Easygas plant, this newspaper was granted access by Liquigas to the unedited version of this footage.

Among other things, a gas distributor who was also involved in this operation was filmed answering a call on his mobile phone, in blatant breach of safety regulations that prohibit the use of such devices.

The reason is that in the possibility of a gas leak, the spark generated by standard mobile phones could trigger a fire or even an explosion.

Once full, the gas cylinders were being transported rather flimsily on a fork lifter, which according to safety regulations should be equipped with spark-suppressing features.

Two stacks of cylinders, each on a wooden pallet, were seen being loaded on top of each other with no support at the sides, with the lifter being manoeuvred in very tight spaces.

Following this procedure, they were cordoned with common cling film.

Due to the fact that the plant had no permanent storage facility it was being supplied by a 20-ton road tanker, which was directly feeding the filling pipes.

However, another employee was seen filling some cylinders directly from the road tanker and at one point a plume of gas was seen coming out as the pipe was not properly inserted.

According to Liquigas, the Easygas workers were also spotted manually installing fake Liquigas seals on its cylinders.

This newspaper sought the opinion of former Enemalta chairman and university lecturer Robert Ghirlando, who was given access to the edited video.

Prof. Ghirlando said that during such an operation a fire could be triggered by an accumulation of gas, which tended to stay at the bottom as it was heavier than air.

He also pointed out it was quite likely to have some leaks when attaching and removing the filling nozzle.

For this reason, he said such an operation warranted very good ventilation.

Otherwise gas cylinders did not pose any particular risks unless there was a leakage or they were exposed to excessive heat. On the plant itself, he said that the set-up seemed to be improvised, while remarking that the whole operation seemed to have been conducted in an amateur way.

He also pointed out that the wall against which the cylinders were being filled would tend to stop the required ventilation.

In addition, he questioned the firefighting equipment and the escape routes in case of an emergency, saying he could not see any clear path to the exit.

As for the manner in which the cylinders were being carried around the plant, he cautioned that the biggest risk would be the spark that could possibly be generated in case of a fall.

This newspaper also sought to clarify a number of issues with the Occupational Health and Safety Authority but was told that gas plants did not require certification from the safety watchdog.

A spokesman said he could only confirm that the authority had visited the plant with other entities in the wake of this footage, but declined to give further details, saying policy was not to disclose details of any complaints filed.

He pointed out that by law, an employer was obliged to carry out a suitable and sufficient risk assessment of all work activities carried out by their employees. Employers were also obliged to apply the control measures identified in the risk assessment to eliminate or minimise the risks as much as possible.

The authority said the onus to investigate any alleged illegal practices was on the police.

On its part, the Malta Resources Authority said that after passing the evidence to the police for investigation, steps had been taken to seal off the equipment seen in the footage.

A spokeswoman said the authority was refraining from making further comments as investigations were ongoing.

Sources said that in the past few weeks a new structure was built at the Easygas plant and is being used to fill gas cylinders.

They added that this activity is taking place in a closed environment and not in a properly ventilated area.

Asked to comment about such claims, the Easygas representative did not reply by the time of going to print.

Similarly, questions sent to the police and to the consumer watchdog were not answered in time.