The European Commission today assured there are no fuel shortages in the European Union (EU) despite supply disruptions created by the Iran war, but said it is preparing for possible jet fuel failures.
“The oil coordination group met yesterday [quinta-feira] and concluded that, at this moment, There is no fuel shortage in the EU. However, we are preparing for possible jet fuel supply shortageswhich continues to be the main concern”, said the spokeswoman for the community executive for Energy, Anna-Kaisa Itkonen.
“The reason for this concern is that our refineries cover around 70% of EU consumption, with the remainder dependent on imports and, if the situation [de bloqueio] in the Strait of Hormuz persists, the EU will be prepared to launch possible coordinated action with regard to aviation fuel”, explained the person responsible, speaking at the institution’s daily press conference in Brussels.
Anna-Kaisa Itkonen pointed out that Brussels is “fully aware that the aviation fuel market is under pressure and being closely monitored” and recalled that “the EU maintains emergency reserves in accordance with European law e [que] these can be released if the market demands it”.
“To date, however, the market has been able to manage this pressure without any shortages. That’s where we are at the moment: real-time coordination and complete and constant situational awareness of evolving events helps us determine next steps,” he said.
Anna-Kaisa Itkonen also said that, despite the sector’s warnings, “this does not mean that [a UE] will run out of aviation fuel completely”, as this “is part of a global market with continuous supply, supported by constant production, imports and reserves” and “there is also considerable capacity to redirect and readjust the supply of aviation fuel within Europe itself”.
After IEA executive director Fatih Birol outlined a worrying scenario yesterday, saying that Europe had “maybe six weeks of jet fuel”, Anna-Kaisa Itkonen reinforced: “There is no indication of systemic fuel shortages that could lead to widespread flight cancellations and this is something we are monitoring closely.”
EU laws oblige member states to maintain 90-day strategic reserves of both oil and gas.
With regard to oil, it is up to Member States to decide what part of these 90-day reserves corresponds to crude oil and what part corresponds to refined products, including kerosene and aviation fuel.
Lusa
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