How secure are our supplies of petrol, road diesel and aviation fuel?
With the G7 talking about releasing emergency oil stocks, it got me wondering just how secure our own fuel supplies really are.
The UK is now down to just four major oil refineries producing petrol, diesel and aviation fuel. None is ultimately UK-owned, although of course they are based here and operate under UK law.
Scotland no longer has a working oil refinery since Grangemouth stopped refining crude in 2025 and became an import and storage terminal.
We are told the UK has substantial emergency oil stocks, including the well-known 90-day requirement. But that does not mean we have 90 days of spare petrol and diesel sitting in tanks around Britain. The figures can include crude oil, different petroleum products, normal commercial stocks and some stocks held overseas.
We have been here before. During the oil crisis of the 1970s, when Britain had considerably more refining capacity than it has today, petrol ration books were actually issued, although full rationing was thankfully never introduced.
So perhaps the simple question is: how secure are our actual supplies of petrol, road diesel and aviation fuel, along with the marine fuels needed by shipping and fishing?
For Shetland that matters. Our ferries, fishing fleet, aviation, food deliveries, agriculture, construction and emergency services all depend on fuel getting here reliably.
There is no suggestion that Britain is about to run short of fuel. But we have fewer refineries and are increasingly dependent on ships bringing in finished fuels from overseas.
I think it is reasonable to ask how much usable petrol, diesel, aviation and marine fuel we actually have stored in Britain, and how long it would last if those supplies were seriously disrupted.
Having oil somewhere in the system is one thing. Having the right fuel, in the right place, when we need it is another.
Let’s hope the wheels keep turning.
Laurence Farmer
Bridge End
Burra
