Luxembourg is not facing any ruptures in fuel supply, according to Eric Bleyer, president of the Luxembourg Energy and Mobility Consortium (GEML), formerly Groupement Pétrolier. His comments come after the Ministry of the Economy issued a warning on Tuesday highlighting the risk of localised shortages of diesel and petrol.
Bleyer does not deny that the overall situation is tense. He explains that barge traffic, particularly on the Rhine, is restricted due to low water levels, which has affected fuel deliveries. Next week, scheduled railway works between Luxembourg City and Trier will add further complications, and recent forest fires in the High Fens region are also having an impact.
Bleyer notes that there is even a canal in Belgium that has been closed to provide water for firefighters tackling the wildfires, adding that several factors are coming together, making the situation more difficult. He points out, however, that the railway works were announced well in advance and that fuel companies have been preparing for issues with river transport for the past month.
Despite these challenges, Bleyer says that fuel suppliers have managed to keep stations stocked, with only brief and very localised interruptions affecting one or two products at some filling stations. He notes that everyone had to work hard to supply Luxembourg's stations, and that sometimes it did not work out perfectly. While some customers may have noticed this, Bleyer emphasises that it was always of a short duration and only affected one or two products at a given station, never resulting in a major outage.
According to Bleyer, fuel stocks remain sufficient, and he strongly advises against panic buying, stressing that hoarding is not an option at present because there is "plenty of product available".
He also stresses that these localised shortages are not leading to price hikes at the pump because Luxembourgish regulation sets the maximum ceiling, determined by Brent crude oil, the euro-dollar exchange rate, and international quotations.
Despite the tensions in the supply chain, fuel companies in Luxembourg remain relatively relaxed about the situation.
