Minister: Jamaica has enough oil and fuel in storage to weather high prices

Jamaica’s Minister of Science, Energy and Technology Daryl Vaz sought last week to address concerns about rising crude oil prices and potential fuel supply problems stemming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Speaking during a meeting of the Standing Finance Committee of the House of Representatives, he provided an update on the nation’s energy security and sought to provide assurances that Jamaica has sufficient fuel reserves.

According to Vaz, Jamaica’s storage depots contain enough refined petroleum products to cover three to four weeks of consumption at current rates, as well as enough crude oil to last for six weeks. “We are well secure in terms of our fuel arrangements,” the energy minister declared.

He went on to say that Jamaica was keeping a close eye on conditions in Eastern Europe arising from the Russia-Ukraine crisis. He also pointed out, though, that the country currently sourced its crude oil from nearby countries – namely Barbados, Brazil, Colombia and Ecuador.

Jamaica receives a shipment of about 60,000 barrels of oil from Barbados every two months, he explained. These volumes are delivered under fixed contracts, “some yearly and some shorter,” he stated.

Vaz acknowledged that volatile prices had sparked concern, but he also pointed out that this volatility was likely to have minimal effects on Jamaica’s oil and fuel inventory levels. The government has been able to secure enough supplies and has enough additional funds to cover price hikes should further unforeseen purchases be necessary in the near future, he said.

He went on to say that interruptions in Russian oil and gas exports could serve as motivation to ramp up production in other regions so as to enable countries to reduce their external energy dependence. Even so, he urged Jamaicans to practise energy conservation by limiting their fuel consumption, despite the fact that their own country was not facing any shortages.

Jamaica’s government has also taken other steps to bolster energy security, such as the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Nigeria. This document, which was finalised at the fourth meeting of the Nigeria-Jamaica Joint Commission in February, addresses the prospects for co-operation with Nigerian National Petroleum Corp. (NNPC) on oil supplies and on upstream exploration projects.