Fuel sufficiency for two months

There is market concern over whether Greece will be able to maintain adequate fuel supplies if the crisis in the Gulf persists.

There is market concern over whether Greece will be able to maintain adequate fuel supplies if the crisis in the Persian Gulf continues. That is because the disruption it has already caused to the global supply chain is putting pressure on the so-called “safety cushions,” such as high inventories and excess production of local refineries. “We are fully secured for two months. If navigation in the Strait of Hormuz is not restored, the situation will become more difficult later,” a high-ranking executive in the refining sector told Kathimerini. Greece has four refineries, in Aspropyrgos, Elefsina, Thessaloniki from Helleniq Energy and Agioi Theodoroi from Motor Oil, with a total output of basic oil products (gasoline, diesel, heating, aviation and marine fuels) that exceeds domestic demand. More than 50% of production is exported, while safety reserves exceed the mandatory amounts for covering demand for 90 days. Greek refineries have had to replace supplies from the Gulf with cargos from alternative sources that ensure production at full capacity until early June. Nevertheless, a prolonged crisis in the Middle East is expected to worsen the already limited supply of oil internationally, making it more difficult and expensive for the country’s refineries to procure crude.