Myanmar’s energy ministry denied on Tuesday that there was a shortage of petrol and diesel within the country, whilst long lines of drivers formed at gas stations in some cities.
The military-controlled Energy Ministry said in a press release on state-run Telegram that the country’s reserves amounted to 45 million tons of gasoline and 70 million tons of diesel fuel, and two fuel shipments were also docked on the port.
Still, two Myanmar oil industry officials said latest rules introduced this month by the central bank forcing residents to exchange foreign currency echange for the local currency, the kyat, had disrupted imports.
Photos on social media on Tuesday showed long lines of vehicles waiting for fuel in several cities. “Just now I witnessed about 300 cars lining up at a … gas station,” said Zaw, a taxi driver within the country’s largest city, Yangon, who declined to provide his full name.
Fuel shortages can be one other blow to residents of Myanmar, where the economy has been in crisis because the army ousted the elected government last 12 months and launched a bloody crackdown on opponents.
Parts of Myanmar also saw worsening power outages last month, prompted by higher prices for gas used to generate electricity.
A senior official in Myanmar’s oil industry told Reuters that gasoline rationing was being introduced due to low supplies as a result of currency constraints.
“We are struggling to buy more products as there are difficulties in making payments due to the new restrictions,” said the official, who asked to not be named.
A joint statement by foreign chambers of commerce issued on April 8 warned that the brand new currency rules could mean “insurmountable challenges” for some businesses operating in Myanmar.
In a separate letter to the central bank, the Japanese embassy in Myanmar said Japanese firms would face significant challenges under the brand new rules.
A second source from Myanmar’s oil industry also said importers had been unable to get US dollars to pay suppliers.
He added that some petrol stations needed to limit sales and a few suffered a loss on fuel sales as a result of the factitious exchange rate.
The official kyat per dollar exchange rate on the central bank is currently 1,850, but that is significantly lower than the unofficial black market rate.
