"European airports will remain dry if Hormuz does not reopen within three weeks"

European airports risk a “systemic” shortage of jet fuel I know it Strait of Hormuz it will not fully reopen within three weeks. It’s the alert of airport sector reported by the Financial Times.

Gilberto Pichetto FratinMinister of the Environment and Energy Securityavoid alarmist tones pur admitting that exist”criticality” at the level of jet fuel supply.

European airports and the shortage of jet fuel

ACI Europewhich represents the EU airportsstated that the fuel reserves for planes are running out, while “the impact of military activities on demand” is further putting a strain on supplies.

Alarm in the airport sector

In a letter seen by the Financial Times, the association warned the European transport commissioner, Apostolos Tzitzikostasof the “growing concerns of airport sector regarding the fuel availability for aircraft, as well as the need for a monitoring and proactive action by the EU”.

Hormuz is a fundamental ‘faucet’

If the passage through it Strait of Hormuz “will not recover significantly and stably within the next three weeks, one systemic deficiency of aviation fuel will become a reality for the EU”, reads the letter. The text adds that the approachinghigh summer season“when the air transport it is fundamental to the whole tourism ecosystem on which many EU economies depend, has intensified these concerns.

Fuel rationing at airports

Some Asian countries, including Vietnam, have started to ration fuel for planes due to the shortage, the FT recalls, but Europe has not registered so far widespread deficienciesalthough i fuel prices are doubled and the airlines have warned of risk of cancellations.

Restrictions on the 4 Italian airports

European airlines say they have enough fuel for several weeks, but i suppliers I can’t guarantee deliveries until May.

Last weekend, four Italian airports they introduced fuel restrictions for aircraft following a supply disruption at a key supplier, although the shortage was not directly linked to the Strait of Hormuzwhich represents the transit route for approximately the 40% of global supplies of jet fuel.

In its letter, ACI Europe asked for a monitoring at European level of supplies to help the sector coordinate its response.

There is no mapping at European level

“At the moment there is no system mappingevaluation and monitoring at European level of production and fuel availability for aircraft,” the document reads.

“A supply crisis would seriously compromise the airport operations and the air connectivitywith the risk of serious economic repercussions for the communities affected and for Europe in the event of systemic deficiency of jet fuel”.

Pichetto Fratin: “There are critical issues but I’m not worried”

“Overall on the front oil and I have no major worries about availability. They can be there though specific sectors or specific parts of this, and in this case the Jet Fuel is one of these with critical issues, because a large part of the Jet Fuel production comes from Persian Gulf and what the eldest has suffered in these times shortage in supply which have automatically led to some critical situations, but they are specific sectorial critical issues on which we must intervene”, are the words ofGilberto Pichetto FratinMinister of the Environment and energy security

“It’s not that with this – specifies the minister – I want to belittle, but it’s not there overall crisiscertainly these situations exist. Now, at least from the elements we have, it should be supply resumedit was probably linked to the reasoning I was making before: that if a load stops, I have to go and look for the load somewhere else. So, let’s hope so restore everything”.