Fuel Shortages Affect Many Critical Sectors

The strike in the energy sector and the resulting fuel shortages or rationing are weighing on operations.

Share:

The strike in the energy sector and the resulting fuel shortages or rationing are impacting operations and workers who are heavily dependent on vehicle travel.

This is a burden in addition to the increase in fuel and energy prices, but its impact on the French economy is still difficult to measure.

According to INSEE, 74% of people who travel to work use their car.

“It is a problem of stress but also a problem of cost because it increases the tension on a market that did not need it and it weighs on the purchasing power of employees,” said Fabrice Le Saché, vice-president and spokesman of Medef.

“Panic” among caregivers and firefighters

Certain emergency vehicles (firefighters, police, SAMU or gendarmerie) are considered as priority. Liberal caregivers (doctors, nurses, home care workers, and seniors’ aides) are demanding that they too have this access.

Firefighters in the Rhône region have asked for measures to allow them to buy fuel to reach their fire stations and thus ensure “continuity of service”.

Apart from health and firefighters, other sectors are asking for the release of additional strategic stocks from the State to maintain their activity.

Transportation “very concerned”

“There is a problem for all companies that have vehicle fleets,” summarizes Fabrice Le Saché.

Road hauliers are “on the edge”, according to the professional organization Otre. The companies have their own tanks but “always have difficulties to be delivered” in time and in quantity.

Some gas stations also refuse to serve or restrict access to trucks.

“We have carriers who have mobilized employees and a delivery service to refuel vehicles during the night … to hope to be able to leave the next morning for deliveries,” says François Asselin, president of the Confederation of SMEs, also mentioning difficulties for maintenance services, breakdown services and cabs.

FlixBus long-distance coaches have requested priority access for their area. Several driving schools have also raised the alarm, with instructors forced to wait in line for hours to fill up.

The wholesalers are “very worried” and anticipate “severe disruptions in deliveries” from Friday, most do not have storage tanks. Some companies have moved up their start times early in the morning to find fuel.

“No seedlings” for agriculture

In the north of France, farmers have exhausted their reserves of RNG (non-road diesel) and are seeing their deliveries rationed: no more than 1,000 liters in the Marne or in Flanders.

Several farms are or will be shut down in the coming days, warned the farmers’ federations, denouncing “a hostage situation” at a critical time.

“If we don’t do the sowing of cereals, it will have an impact on the availability of wheat in 2023 and therefore on bread. We are on alert, because the sowing is now, not in ten days or a month,” explained Joel Limouzin, vice president of the majority agricultural union FNSEA.

Another blow for the building industry

Some construction sites have already been suspended, reports François Asselin of the CPME.

“In the construction industry, excavators and machines need a lot of fuel, the places most affected by shortages are the Ile-de-France and the Hauts de France, with also employees who can not reach their sites, “said the president of the building trades (CAPEB) Jean-Christophe Repon.

It asks the government the possibility of obtaining partial activity measures by territory as was the case for Covid-19.

Business and leisure, collateral victims

For Fabrice Le Saché, there is an impact on “leisure, restaurants, shopping centers and trade in general, tertiary activities …

There are people who freeze their weekends and therefore do not consume and do not travel.” “Activity during the week of September 26 was very good (…) but it is down 6% compared to last year during the following week,” especially in outlying areas where consumers drive, added Yohann Petiot, Alliance’s general manager for the
commerce, which includes department stores and clothing and footwear brands.

“The logistics of the brands are under tension and this has the effect of slowing down the activity for some stores (…) For all that, the supply of the stores remains fully assured”, assured the
federation of commerce and distribution.

The U.S. government has supported Argentina’s request for a temporary suspension of an order to hand over its stake in YPF, a 16.1 billion USD judgment aimed at satisfying creditors.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency extends compliance deadlines for coal-fired power plant operators regarding groundwater monitoring and the closure of waste ponds.
Eskom aims to accelerate its energy transition through a new dedicated unit, despite a USD22.03bn debt and tariff uncertainties slowing investment.
Several major U.S. corporations announce investments totaling nearly USD 90 billion to strengthen energy infrastructure in Pennsylvania, aimed at powering data centers vital to the rapid growth of the artificial intelligence sector.
Nearly USD92bn will be invested by major American and international groups in new data centres and energy infrastructure, responding to the surge in electricity demand linked to the rise of artificial intelligence.
Nouakchott has endured lengthy power interruptions for several weeks, highlighting the financial and technical limits of the Mauritanian Electricity Company as Mauritania aims to widen access and green its mix by 2030.
Between 2015 and 2024, four multilateral climate funds committed nearly eight bn USD to clean energy, attracting private capital through concessional terms while Africa and Asia absorbed more than half of the volume.
The Global Energy Policies Hub shows that strategic reserves, gas obligations, cybersecurity and critical-mineral policies are expanding rapidly, lifting oil coverage to 98 % of world imports.
According to a report by Ember, the Chinese government’s appliance trade-in campaign could double residential air-conditioner efficiency gains in 2025 and trim up to USD943mn from household electricity spending this year.
Washington is examining sectoral taxes on polysilicon and drones, two supply chains dominated by China, after triggering Section 232 to measure industrial dependency risks.
The 2025-2034 development plan presented by Terna includes strengthening Sicily’s grid, new interconnections, and major projects to support the region’s growing renewable energy capacity.
Terna and NPC Ukrenergo have concluded a three-year partnership in Rome aimed at strengthening the integration of the Ukrainian grid into the pan-European system, with an in-depth exchange of technological and regulatory expertise.
GE Vernova has secured a major contract to modernise the Kühmoos substation in Germany, enhancing grid reliability and integration capacity for power flows between Germany, France and Switzerland.
The National Energy System Operator forecasts electricity demand to rise to 785 TWh by 2050, underlining the need to modernise grids and integrate more clean energy to support the UK’s energy transition.
Terna has signed a guarantee agreement with SACE and the European Investment Bank to finance the Adriatic Link project, totalling approximately €1bn ($1.08bn) and validated as a major transaction under Italian regulations.
India unveils a series of reforms on oil and gas contracts, introducing a fiscal stability clause to enhance the sector’s attractiveness for foreign companies and boost its growth ambitions in upstream energy.
The European Commission is launching a special fund of EUR2.3bn ($2.5bn) to boost Ukraine’s reconstruction and attract private capital to the energy and infrastructure sectors.
Asia dominated global new renewable energy capacity in 2024 with 71% of installations, while Africa recorded limited growth of only 7.2%, according to the latest annual report from IRENA.
US President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act dramatically changes energy investment rules, imposing restrictions on renewables while favouring hydrocarbons, according to a recent report by consultancy firm Wood Mackenzie.
On July 8, 2025, the Senate validated the Gremillet bill, aimed at structuring France's energy transition with clear objectives for nuclear power, renewable energies, and energy renovation.