Panic buying of petrol, octane spurs fuel shortages

For the past two days, long queues of vehicles have been seen in front of Dhaka's filling stations. Cars, microbuses and motorcycles have been seen waiting late into the night for petrol and octane. As the day wears on, the lines grow longer. Fights have reportedly broken out over fuel.

However, those working at petrol pumps in Dhaka say that there is no shortage of petrol and octane in the country. However, over the last two days, panic buying over concerns of fuel shortages have, ironically, created a crisis. The government's three depots are unable to meet the increased demand.

Under the circumstances, the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) has begun rationing fuel at the consumer level.  According to the new guidelines, a maximum of two litres of octane or petrol can be supplied to motorcycles per day, 10 litres to private cars, and 20-25 litres to SUVs, and microbuses.

Diesel-powered pickups and local buses can be supplied with 70-80 litres, while long-distance buses, trucks, covered vans, and container trucks can get up to 200-220 litres

Nazmus Shakib, an employee at a private company, says: "I buy oil for my car once a week. But yesterday, I saw that the government had asked people to conserve fuel. After the news spread, I saw many people in the office rushing to buy oil.

"I also went at night, but went back after seeing the huge line. In the morning, I was able to buy oil fairly normally. However, after that, the lines increased again."

Although a crisis has arisen due to the panic buying, there is no shortage of petrol or octane in the country, said Nazmul Haque, president of the Petrol Pump Owners Association.

"People are panicking and buying oil in droves. In fact, there is no possibility of a petrol or octane crisis in the next month. There is enough oil. And it is produced locally.

“A total of 20 percent of petrol and octane is imported. There is no reason this has to be a crisis. Since diesel has to be imported, there may be a slight shortage in diesel. However, there is no reason for diesel to be a problem even in Eid season. We have enough stock to last until Eid.”

Nazmul Haque, owner of Ramna Petrol Pump - one of the oldest filling stations in Dhaka, opposite the High Court – says: “My pump sells 15,000 litres of oil every day to just motorcycles. And, let’s say, 10,000 – 12,000 litres are sold to private cars.

“Of the 15,000 litres sold, not even 5 percent of motorcycles fill their tanks. And now 100 percent of motorcycles are filling them up. Yesterday (Thursday), 35,000 litres of oil went to motorcycles. All the tanks are full,” he said.

“Whatever vehicle comes up wants to fill up its tank. It takes 50-52 litres of oil to fill the tank of each car. I gave them 52,000 litres of oil yesterday. It has run out. Neither we, nor the government can handle this. What can the government do here?”

Due to the rapid depletion of the pump stock, fuel traders have to rush to the government depot to get oil. But, due to the increased demand, a line of tank lorries is already waiting by the time they arrive. The situation has disrupted the supply system.

Nazmul says, “Dhaka’s ride-sharing motorcycle drivers usually buy oil for Tk 200, finish the ride and buy it again. Now they are filling up their tanks. And ordinary motorcyclists, who used to buy oil for no more than Tk 500, are filling up their tanks.

“Private car owners, who used to buy 10 to 15 litres of oil, are now filling up their tanks. This is 10 years of experience speaking. Now, we are not getting any profit from selling oil. How will the government handle it if this continues!”

Videos of motorcyclists shoving and fighting while standing in lines for petrol at various petrol pumps have gone viral.

Mir Ahsanuddin Parvez, member secretary of the Petrol Pump Dealers and Owners Association, another organisation of petrol pump owners, said: “In fact, people are buying more and more oil out of frustration and anxiety due to the global situation. Oil sales at the pumps have increased severalfold.

“As a result, the supply system has almost collapsed. The government is no longer able to supply this much oil.”

Stating that unpleasant incidents and clashes are also taking place at many pumps, the fuel trader says: “We are receiving news from all over Bangladesh. People are crowded mostly in Dhaka and Chattogram. Apart from this, we are also hearing about crowds in Cumilla, Feni, Jashore, and Khulna. However, such crowds are not seen in Barishal.

“Motorcyclists are lining up at the pumps. They are also creating chaos in many places. There have been reports of clashes and unpleasant incidents. How much more can the pump staff manage? They are not getting the water by paying oil and accepting cash. Under the circumstances, we seek the intervention of the administration.”

Minister of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Iqbal Hasan Mahmood told bdnews24.com, “The war is not over yet, and it is not yet certain when it will end. We do not have a crisis now, but what will we do if there is a crisis in two days? So we are trying to run with what we have for a long time.”

“People have to take on greater responsibility now. Everyone has to be economical. I hope that, if we remain alert, we can overcome the crisis.”