Europe has “maybe six weeks or so” of jet fuel left before it’s forced to start canceling flights, if oil supplies remain blocked by the Iran war — just in time for summer vacation, the head of the International Energy Agency warned on Thursday.
IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol described the current situation as “the largest energy crisis we have ever faced” — as he called for the Strait of Hormuz to reopen and allow global oil and gas supplies to flow.
“Several European countries may start to face shortages of jet fuel in the next six weeks,” Birol notified the Associated Press.
“If we are not able to open the Strait of Hormuz … I can notify you soon we will hear the news that some of the flights from city A to city B might be canceled as a result of lack of jet fuel,” he added
The IEA’s April report stated Europe could start seeing physical shortages of jet fuel by June, even if the region can replace half of the supplies it normally receives from the Middle East.
The continent has the highest depconcludeence on jet fuel from the Middle East, with the region supplying nearly 375,000 bpd, or 75%, of Europe’s net jet fuel imports, according to the IAE.
“In the past, there was a group called ‘Dire Straits.’ It’s a dire strait now, and it is going to have major implications for the global economy,” Birol stated.
“And the longer it goes, the worse it will be for the economic growth and inflation around the world,” he added.
Birol’s warning comes just a week after ACI Europe, which represents airports across the continent, suggested that Europe had only three weeks before it faced a serious fuel shortage.
The fuel shortage is a direct result of Iran sealing off access to the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint that oversees the transport of 20% of the world’s oil supply.
Tehran shut down the strait in retaliation for the war, with the traffic of Iranian oil ships now also halted after the US issued its own naval blockade in the Gulf earlier this week.
It remains unclear how long the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed after US-Iranian peace talks broke down over the weekconclude, while further nereceivediations remain tense.
With Post Wires
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