Fuel panic buying, despite assurances supplies arriving

Last Updated on Monday, 13 April 2026, 22:30 by Writer

Motorists were up to late Monday afternoon panic-buying gasoline and dieseline, despite assurances by President Irfaan Ali that fuel is on its way to Guyana Monday night.

Though those assurances stemmed from his meeting with major fuel importers earlier Monday, hundreds of vehicles were in long queues to GUYOIL and RUBIS filling stations.

Motorcyclists opted to flock directly to fuel pumps at the state-owned Guyana Oil Company’s (GUYOIL) Regent Street branch with five-gallon bottles to stock up on supplies.

Police have already restricted traffic going further west on Regent Street from Camp Street to accommodating the queues that have snaked around Regent and Camp Streets back to South Road.

There is another queue West on Regent Street around King Street.

Down the road, the MOBIL filling station at Regent and King streets was virtually deserted and there were no pump attendants, indications that there was no fuel.

President Ali earlier Monday hoped that supplies would arrive on Monday night, in keeping with promises by SOL/MOBIL. “Well, we are monitoring it to ensure that the assurances given are followed through with,” he told Demerara Waves Online News.

He also said that fuel for Guyana Power and Light (GPL), the country’s major electricity provider, would not be affected by the fuel shortage.

The President said the GUYOIL reported that it had fuel, RUBIS was increasing its supply and SOL (MOBIL) had a “shipping and logistics issue” because the anchorage for one their vessels broke and the vessel was forced to return.

“RUBIS and GUYOIL said that they don’t foresee a challenge and they have orders in line and some of it will arrive as early as tonight (Monday) night.

Fuel lines of this magnitude were last seen in Guyana in the 1980s when there was widespread and prolonged shortage of most fuels including kerosene.