Fuel crisis: Some stations running out of petrol but disruptions intermittent

 

Amid mounting concerns over fuel shortages linked to the war in West Asia, reports of petrol stations running out of RON95 and diesel have flooded social media in the past week.

However, checks by Malaysiakini today found that while some stations did run out of RON95, such incidents appeared isolated and intermittent rather than widespread.

Malaysiakini visited around 10 petrol stations across the Shah Alam, Subang Jaya, and Petaling Jaya districts - including outlets operated by Caltex Malaysia and Shell Malaysia.

Of these, two Caltex stations in Shah Alam were found to have run out of RON95 during the site visit.

When queried, an employee at one of the Caltex stations, who requested anonymity, said the station had run out of RON95 since yesterday evening, while another location had depleted its supply earlier this morning.

“However, we are expecting the oil tankers to arrive this afternoon to do a refill,” the employee said.

In contrast, Shell stations that Malaysiakini visited across the three cities were operating as usual.

This includes outlets in Subang Jaya and Glenmarie, which social media users on Threads previously reported as having run out of RON95.

Staff at these locations told Malaysiakini that the disruptions were one-off, adding that their fuel supply had not experienced any hiccups since.

Temporary shortages

Last week, Shell said that a surge in petrol demand amid global oil supply volatility could result in temporary shortages at some of its stations.

The company added that it is taking steps to ensure continuity of supply across its retail network, in line with the government’s recent announcement.

Malaysiakini has contacted Shell and Caltex for further comments.

Petrol Dealers Association of Malaysia (PDAM) president Khairul Annuar Abdul Aziz told Malaysiakini that the difficulties faced by petrol station operators stem largely from cash flow pressures linked to fluctuating fuel prices.

He explained that operators function as price takers, with fuel prices set by the government, while supply and allocation are controlled by oil companies.

He added that price volatility can strain dealers’ finances, as it requires more capital when prices rise.

This, in turn, exposes dealers to losses when prices fall, and higher-cost fuel must be sold at lower regulated rates.

Currently, the price of unsubsidised RON95 is at RM4.27 per litre, compared to the RM1.99 per litre subsidised price. - FMT