French diesel stocks shrink as strikes continue
French oil refinery strikes continue to bring the country’s production to a halt, causing widespread shortages at fuel-stations. Meanwhile, there are few signs of much-needed overseas supply to replenish diminishing diesel inventories. The map shows shortages at French petrol stations.
The lowest number of tankers since March are scheduled to deliver US diesel and other fuels to Europe. None of these hired tankers are bound for France. According to Bloomberg data, there are five charters either booked or anticipated for shipment to Europe from the US in the next two weeks, which is barely half the normal level of the past year.
In addition to a reluctance to shipping cargoes to France, the US is facing its own glut of diesel. Inventories of distillates, which includes diesel and heating oil, have declined for the last seven weeks, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said. Domestic demand is 5% higher than the five-year average for the time of year.
Workers at the port of Le Havre in Normandy, the key import facility in northwest France, voted last week to stop unloading oil. By Wednesday, 29 tankers had been blocked from reaching the port of Marseille on the Mediterranean. The actions are bringing the country’s refining industry to its knees, and is now spreading into the power generation realm.
French buyers face a significant disincentive if they are unable to discharge their purchase and incur demurrage charges.
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