Sf some airlines claim not to encounter any disruption, such as Air Senegal which published a reassuring message on its website aimed at its users -, “the company wishes to reassure its passengers that its program is running normally usual flights with the same schedules – others like Turkish Airlines, Brussels Airlines or Air France have chosen to add a technical stopover to their return flight. The Dakar-Paris flights are thus extended by 1 hour 45 minutes due to a technical stopover in Las Palmas, in the Canary Islands.
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“Unavailability of kerosene”
The reason for these changes made by some airlines? “The unavailability of aviation fuel (kerosene) at Blaise Diagne International Airport (AIBD)” in Dakar, Senegal. As of April 15, the Aviation Fuel Handling Company (SMCADY) in charge with three suppliers (Vivo Energy, Ola Energy and Total Energy) of supplying the airport with kerosene, informed AIBD management of the situation. , specifying that “aircraft refueling operations will no longer be able to continue from Wednesday April 20 at 12 noon, for a provisional period of two weeks”. The AIBD management then immediately sent the airlines a notam (message to aircrew) informing them that “from Saturday April 17, 2022, all air operators operating at Blaise Diagne International Airport are required to take the arrangements to carry the quantity of fuel necessary to ensure the fuel autonomy of the return flights”.
In an attempt to “reassure the population”, the Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Sophie Gladima, held a press briefing on Tuesday 19, assuring that “there is no break”, that the situation would return to normal in the next few days and the notam be lifted. Having not yet received kerosene, this notam was still in effect on Thursday 21 April. “We are waiting for the ship to refuel the AIBD’s tanks and hope to be able to lift it soon”, informs Cheikh Diouf, Director General of the AIBD. However, he wants to be confident: “The tanks are not empty, but the remaining kerosene must be optimized while waiting for new kerosene to be received. Refueling priority was thus given to Air Senegal as well as to military flights.
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Effects of the war in Ukraine
“Since the opening of the AIBD in 2017, we have never had this type of problem. It is a combination of several circumstances that have led to this situation, ”says the general manager. Among them, the first cause mentioned is the surge in oil prices worldwide, a direct consequence of the war in Ukraine, which resulted in a rise in the price of hydrocarbons. “The kerosene supply system is severely disrupted due to an unfavorable international situation combined with unprecedented tensions on the prices of certain raw materials. The production of hydrocarbons is directly impacted, and this everywhere in the world”, indicated the press release of the AIBD, published at the beginning of the week. The tension on the jet – the kerosene – has thus particularly increased. “It is increasingly difficult to find crude oil”, emphasizes Mohamed Chaabouni, Managing Director of Vivo Energy and President of the Professional Association of the Petroleum Industry in Senegal).
A tension also recognized by the Minister of Petroleum and Energy, who also recalled the difficulties of routing. “A company had ordered some product, which ultimately did not arrive. What are the reasons ? We do not know them. SMCADY wanted to alert but went too far in relation to its alert”, judges the minister. Due to lack of timely delivery, the AIBD tanks had a reserve of 2,800 m3 of fuel, prompting SMCADY to inform the airport management of the situation. A ship carrying the jet is expected during the day on Friday, which will allay concerns, while another cargo ship is expected between April 30 and May 2. Some observers refer to poor management and a lack of anticipation, but for Mr. Diouf, “measures were taken before the shortage arrived, since the alert was issued when the AIBD has autonomy of 15 days “.
Added to the difficult period is also the shutdown of the African Refining Company (SAR), the country’s only refinery, which had been shut down for technical maintenance for four months. While this “metal shutdown” was initially not expected to disrupt the supply of hydrocarbons, tensions arising from the international context prompted the State of Senegal to ask the SAR to resume jet production, which it had stopped for several years. The refinery is due to resume operations at the end of the month. “The period is difficult, but everyone is working to avoid ruptures. As the duration of the conflict is unknown, we proposed to federate the efforts of the actors of the hydrocarbon sector and to launch grouped orders to secure the stocks”, reports Mr. Chaabouni. The proposal is currently being studied by the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy.
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Road fuels and butane gas
Beyond the aviation sector which, if the situation persists, will have a strong impact on air traffic and on the economy of Senegal, the supply of fuels and gas has also been under tension for a time. “The product exists, it’s a problem of access”, supports the minister. Deliveries by tank truck to the various points of sale would have been slowed down by transport difficulties (traffic jams, etc.). Thus last weekend, several service stations in Dakar had no more fuel available. A situation quickly returned to normal from the start of the week. An SAR ship also arrived on Wednesday with 18K t of diesel and another, for Total this time, arrived on Thursday with 31K t. The resumption of upcoming SAR activities should also ensure a better supply in the coming months. “When the demand increases, you can feel the effects, because you have to deliver more and there can be some delays in routing and supplying stations at the same time. But the stocks are sufficient and these concerns are resolved quickly, ”assures Mohamed Chaabouni. According to Sophie Gladima, the difficulty would be found above all at the level of a “parallel market in the distribution of gas cylinders”, a situation which she strongly denounces.
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