Fuel company Rubis will not be fined for a failure to report a gasoline spill at its St George’s gas storage plant inside the legal deadline.

A government spokeswoman said yesterday that under the Clean Air Act 1991, failure to report a spill within one hour can only lead to the polluter being hit with an “emission control order”.

She added: “A licensee can only be found guilty of an offence upon a subsequent failure of this condition, in which case the maximum fine would be $5,000.”

As it was Rubis’s first offence of this type, the company will not face a fine.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources said in April that notification of the leak at the Ferry Reach facility “was late by approximately 24 hours”.

The news came after confirmation last week that traces of the 17,200-US gallon leak had spread outside the site where the accident happened in March.

A Rubis spokesman said it was difficult to predict when all the leaked gas would be recovered.

Specialist US firm Arcadis was drafted in after the leak to help with clean-up efforts.

The spokesman added: “From Rubis’s perspective, the important factors are ensuring the focus remains on ensuring that potential risks to human health and the environment have been and continue to be properly addressed using industry-leading best practices.

“The important fact is that no off-site receptors or on-site workers are at risk from this event, whether by groundwater or vapour pathways.”

The spokesman was unable to comment on the cost of the clean-up effort to date because of an insurance claim.

But he added: “There has been no expense spared in the remediation efforts.

“Rubis and Arcadis’s top priority is protecting the environment and the surrounding community through the best technology and approaches available. We appreciate the co-operation and patience of all the agencies and people involved as we work to complete the remediation process.”

Jonathan Starling, executive director at Greenrock still has questions about the cause of the leak.

He said: “I understand from previous press releases that there was a faulty valve. However, I don’t think it’s been made clear what caused that valve to fail in the first place, or what steps they have taken to prevent future spills, or improving their handling of such.”

Mr Starling said that reducing reliance on fossil fuels though the use of electric vehicles and renewable power sources was the best way to avoid future spills.

The Government said last Friday that only a quarter of the gasoline spilt seven months ago had been recovered.

A spokeswoman added that traces of the spill were now visible outside the Rubis site.

The Government said in May that John Rankin, a US expert, had been brought in to consult on cleanup efforts.

Dr Rankin’s contract will include consultation on data submitted until March 2018.