“What is voluntary today could become compulsory,” bloc’s transport commissioner warns, while denying supply crunch exists.
Tommaso Lecca
“We will assess whether we need a minimum stock obligation for jet fuel, requiring member states to maintain minimum emergency reserves,” he said during the press conference.
Tzitzikostas also said the AccelerateEU plan — which the Commission will present Wednesday in response to recent energy market shocks — will include the creation of a new fuel observatory, which “will start with jet fuel,” and efforts to secure “an alternative jet fuel supply for Europe, such as type A jet fuel produced in the United States.”
However, the fuel produced in the U.S. differs from the Jet A1 international standard, making it harder to scale up imports to the EU. It would also require infrastructure adjustments to keep the two fuels separate, according to George Shaw, a senior oil analyst at Kpler.
Jet fuel prices in Europe have more than doubled since the war in the Middle East began, and EU airlines have started canceling unprofitable flights and retiring their least fuel-efficient aircraft.
Germany said it will convene its National Security Council in the coming days to address the jet fuel situation.
