Lengthy queues and supply issues have affected petrol stations across the country in recent days.
The shortages at filling stations came after BP had warned the government last week that it would not be able to fulfil all deliveries due to HGV driver shortages.
Motorists then became concerned and rushed to the pumps. This caused a panic and led to a spike in demand, which further exacerbated the supply worries.
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As a result, the government suspended competition laws for the fuel industry, allowing suppliers to target filling stations which are running low.
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It had been rumoured that the British Army would be brought in to help ease the situation, reports the Manchester Evening News.
Though it was reported, the government has “no plans at the moment” to use the Army to drive petrol tankers amid continuing shortages at filling stations, the Environment Secretary George Eustice has said.
Mr Eustice said there was not a shortage of fuel and called on motorists to stop “panic buying” petrol and return to their normal pattern of purchasing.
He added: “We are bringing Ministry of Defence (MoD) trainers in to accelerate some of the HGV training to clear a backlog of people who want to carry out those tests, and there’s definitely a role there for the MoD.
“In terms of other things we’ve no plans at the moment to bring in the Army to actually do the driving, but we always have a Civil Contingencies section within the Army on standby – but we’re not jumping to that necessarily at the moment.”
RAC figures show the average price of a litre of petrol across the UK increased from 135.87p on Friday to 136.59p on Sunday.
Pump prices have not been that high since September 2013.
The RAC warned that the situation could worsen as retailers pass on the cost of rising wholesale prices.
The wholesale price of petrol rose from 123.25p on Monday September 20 to 125.22p just four days later.
RAC fuel spokesman Simon Williams said: “When it comes to pump prices, it’s a pretty bleak picture for drivers.
“With the cost of oil rising and now near a three-year high, wholesale prices are being forced up which means retailers are paying more than they were just a few days ago for the same amount of fuel."
The Manchester Evening News contacted major UK supermarkets and petrol stations for comments. Here are the latest updates:
Tesco fuel shortage
A Tesco spokesperson told Manchester Evening News: “We have good availability of fuel, and we’re working really hard to ensure regular deliveries to our petrol filling stations across the UK every day”.
Morrisons fuel shortage
A Morrisons spokesperson told Manchester Evening News: "It is a rapidly moving situation and we are working hard with our suppliers to ensure we can continue to keep our pumps open and serve our customers. We apologise for the inconvenience caused during this time."
Sainsbury's fuel shortage
Sainsbury's said: "We’re experiencing high demand for fuel. We’re working closely with our supplier to maintain supply and all our sites continue to receive fuel."
BP fuel shortage
In a statement, BP said: "With the intense demand seen over the past two days, we estimate that around 30% of sites in this network do not currently have either of the main grades of fuel.
"We are working to resupply as rapidly as possible."
Shell fuel shortage
Shell said: "We are working hard to ensure supplies for customers. Since Friday we have been seeing a higher-than-normal demand across our network which is resulting in some sites running low on some grades."
ESSO
Esso said: "The majority of the 1,200 Esso branded sites in the UK are owned and operated by a number of independent retail companies – these companies are responsible for arranging supplies of Esso fuel from the supply terminal to their service stations. As regards our own operations, a number of our 200 Tesco Alliance sites (Esso forecourt with a Tesco Express shop) are impacted in some way.
"We are working closely with all parties in our distribution network to optimise supplies and minimise any inconvenience to customers.
"We apologise to our customers for any inconvenience.
"Our advice is for motorists to stick to their normal buying patterns."
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https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiYGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNhbWJyaWRnZS1uZXdzLmNvLnVrL25ld3MvdWstd29ybGQtbmV3cy90ZXNjby1icC1zYWluc2J1cnlzLW1vcnJpc29ucy1zaGVsbC0yMTY5NDY1MNIBZGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNhbWJyaWRnZS1uZXdzLmNvLnVrL25ld3MvdWstd29ybGQtbmV3cy90ZXNjby1icC1zYWluc2J1cnlzLW1vcnJpc29ucy1zaGVsbC0yMTY5NDY1MC5hbXA?oc=5
2021-09-28 06:13:11Z
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