LONDON, Sept 27 (Reuters) - Britain's fuel retail sector,
still recovering from the COVID-19 crisis, is facing further
disruption after a shortage of truck drivers hit supplies to gas
stations and led to panic buying.
Drivers queued for hours at gas stations that were still
serving fuel, albeit often rationed, as the Petrol Retailers
Association (PRA) said members had reported that 50% to 90% of
pumps were dry in some areas.
BP on Sunday said nearly a third of its British
petrol stations had run out of the two main grades of fuel.
Royal Dutch Shell said on Monday that it had seen
higher than usual demand across its network in Britain and that
some sites were running low on some grades of fuel.
Diesel for road use constitutes about 40% of Britain's
petroleum product consumption, followed by gasoline which
accounts for about 20%.
Oil product demand was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic,
dropping by over 23% year-on-year, which forced refineries to
cut production and imports to fall.
"The last few days have seen a considerable increase in
people buying fuel, which has led to some confirmed forecourt
shortages ..., however, fuels are continuing to be delivered,
meaning stocks are being replenished," a spokesperson for UK
Petroleum Industry Association (UKPIA) said.
Further statistics on Britain's petroleum products sector is
available from the UKPIA: https://online.flippingbook.com/view/570304713/5/
(Reporting by Ahmad Ghaddar; Editing by Alexander Smith)