Europe urges fewer flights, remote working as Iran war drains oil supplies
The spiralling energy crisis is forcing Europe into emergency mode, with politicians urging citizens to work from home, cut back on driving and avoid flying as the conflict in Iran cuts off a critical share of the world’s oil supply.
The European Commission’s energy chief, Dan Jørgensen, said Europe is facing a prolonged crisis that will persist even if immediate peace is achieved.
He warned that the EU was facing a “very serious situation” with no clear end in sight.
Following a meeting of the EU’s 27 energy ministers on Tuesday to discuss the crisis, Jørgensen stated, “The more you can do to save oil, especially diesel, especially jet fuel, the better we are off.”
Jørgensen urged member countries to follow the advice of the International Energy Agency, which he said included “work from home where possible, reduce highway speed limits by 10km [an hour], encourage public transport, alternate private car access … increase car sharing and adopt efficient driving practices.”
Brent crude oil price briefly hit $119 (£90) per barrel on Tuesday, close to its highest since the start of the US-Israel war with Iran.
With oil and jet fuel prices soaring as supply dries up following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, governments and businesses are scrambling to avoid crises.
Thousands of flights have been cancelled, and more are expected to be cancelled, as global airlines struggle with surging fuel costs.
UK’s ‘calm’ approach to energy crisis
The UK government has taken a less prescriptive stance than the “work from home” directives coming out of Brussels, as Downing Street officials have urged Brits to “act as normal”, insisting the government was working through plans to provide guarantees to people.
Business secretary Peter Kyle has said the UK has no supply chain issue for jet fuel “at this moment”.
Speaking to Times Radio on Wednesday morning, Kyle said: “I was looking immediately after the conflict started, where we interact in order to get resilience into our society, into our economy, we’ve been working with all these key sectors, identifying sectors where there may well be challenges down the track.”
Kyle said the UK has “no (fuel) supply chain issues at this moment at all, adding “people need to just realise that our country is well supplied when it comes to critical infrastructure and fuel.”
This comes after US President Donald Trump telling the UK to “go get your own oil” in a post on Truth Social on Tuesday, adding that the country should either buy from the US or “build up some delayed courage, go to the Strait, and just take it”.