Fuel Shortage Concerns As Refinery Staff Take Strike Action

FuelQuest, the leading on-demand software and services company for the global downstream energy industry, is today advising retailers on the importance of managing fuel stocks in light of the strikes at the Humber and Lindsey oil refineries. Over 300 employees are on strike and there are fears this action will cause significant delays in delivery schedules. Retailers must to be equipped with solutions capable of providing real-time intuitive data on stock levels and purchase prices in order to ensure that no stock outs occur during strikes.

Petrol retailing has become the commodity that millions of motorists use on a daily basis. With this in mind, it is vital that retailers use forward planning to prepare for potential closures to avert queues at the forecourt. During a time of fuel shortages – impending as well as actual – retailers need to have real time, accurate visibility of stock levels in order to respond correctly to the circumstances. FuelQuest’s Fuel Management System (FMS) is designed to provide insight to site inventory levels across the entire network and forecast requirements accordingly. Using the real time picture of inventories, it successfully determines and manages the associated supply chain operations.

“With many major retailers running busy and successful forecourts across the UK, the onus is them to ensure that they have the right information at their fingertips,” says FuelQuest’s Director of Solutions Engineering, Greg Salverson. “Retailers equipped with the right solutions to make rapid decisions before and during supply shortages, as well as in the recovery phase, will be able to get their forecourts back to normal after the shortage is over. Through solutions such as our FMS, retailers are able to forecast their stock levels, in order to plan ahead to minimise supply distribution in events such as the strikes.