Energy chief apologises for petrol station delays, says fuel sufficient
Thailand’s fuel supply remains sufficient despite recent disruption at petrol stations, the director-general of the Department of Energy Business said today, March 17, after apologising for queues and delivery problems seen in recent days.
Speaking at Government House, Sarawut Kaewtathip began with a public apology for what he described as confusion and obstacles faced outside fuel stations.
Sarawut said Thailand has six oil refineries with a total refining capacity of 175 million litres per day, and insisted all refineries were still operating normally. The main problem, he said, had been a distribution bottleneck in getting fuel from refineries to service stations.
He explained that, under normal conditions, refineries sell fuel to large-scale traders, including those classed under Section 7, and at times through intermediaries known as jobbers.
Recent circumstances meant deliveries to some intermediaries did not go as planned, he said. Jobbers typically supply the industrial sector, and when that fuel could not be delivered as usual, more customers turned to retail stations, contributing to the pressure seen at pumps.
The Energy Ministry had reportedly received instructions from the prime minister and deputy prime minister to coordinate closely with all refineries and ensure production was not halted.
He added that major traders were being asked to supply medium-sized customers to help spread fuel distribution beyond service stations.
Sarawut said the ministry was also coordinating with the Royal Thai Police, the Transport Ministry, the Interior Ministry and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to extend delivery time windows, allowing more fuel to be transported to stations.
The Energy Ministry would work with the Interior Ministry and the Commerce Ministry to prevent hoarding, he added.
On reserves, Sarawut said Thailand currently has enough fuel for at least 101 days. He also said additional crude had been secured, including 1.9 million barrels from Angola currently on the way and 625,000 barrels from the United States expected to arrive.
Inspections were stepped up over the past three to four days, with officials checking upstream stocks on March 13 across 23 provinces, covering 53 depots and 589 tanks, before inspecting 1,502 service stations on March 15 and 16.
According to Sarawut, around 150 stations had to close because fuel ran out, 1,039 were open but awaiting some products, and 306 had sufficient fuel for sale.
Officials found no evidence of hoarding at stations that had temporarily closed, and said the shortages were genuine.
Sarawut urged the public to continue daily life as normal, saying there was no need to stockpile, while asking for cooperation on fuel conservation.
When asked about purchasing oil from Russia, he said Thailand used Russian oil before 2022 and was still considering how to proceed without breaching sanctions.
MGR Online reported that he also said station demand had risen sharply, with consumption at stations reaching 90 million litres per day and, on some days, 120 million litres, which he said exceeded what Thailand could refine.
A return to normal demand should help stabilise the situation, while refining capacity remains sufficient, he stressed.
In a separate development, a rescue foundation leader in Chiang Mai has called on petrol stations to relax a limit that caps fuel purchases at 500 baht per vehicle per day, warning the restriction is affecting emergency medical operations nationwide.
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