Fears or famine? Gas companies weigh in on fuel shortages in BC

The reaction to the Friday, November 19 provincial order to temporarily restrict gas for non-essential drivers in parts of BC has been mixed.

There have been conflicting reports of sold-out stations and long-lines alongside reports of business as usual at the pumps.

Daily Hive reached some of the major gas retailers in the Lower Mainland to find out first-hand how they’re dealing with the fallout of the new order.

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Suncor, who operate Petro-Canada, said that they’re understanding of this being a difficult time for people in many BC communities.

“We are doing everything we can to ensure that we have supply at our locations,” they said in a statement.

“We are not currently experiencing any significant supply impacts in BC as a result of the weather-related issues. However, a few Petro-Canada locations have been closed and we are currently unable to service others as a result of road closures in areas directly impacted by the weather.”

“We will continue to monitor the situation over the coming days and we will look to reopen and resume service to all affected sites as quickly as possible.”

No gas in BC, seems bad pic.twitter.com/At5tRKZMqy

— Ryan Calder (@rycalder) November 20, 2021

Cenovus, who operate Husky gas, told Daily Hive that “current road closures, delays and increased travel times, combined with an increase in demand from what appears to be panic buying, is making it difficult to keep sufficient product at our sites.”

“Our logistics team is working hard to try to ensure adequate supplies,” they said in a statement.

I totally rocked the 30 Litre Challenge this morning. #30litrechallenge #bcpoli #BCStorm #bcgas pic.twitter.com/6p9Ovspo6X

— Roth Niven (@rothniven) November 20, 2021

Right now, enforcement of the order is mitigable with the province relying mostly on the honour system to keep non-essential drivers from using more than their allotment.

“We are confident that there is enough gasoline, that people are doing the right thing,” said Public Safety Minister Mike Farnsworth in an emergency management update from the province on Monday, November 22.

The province expects the remaining gasoline reserves to last and will keep the 30 L per fill-up limit until December 1, 2021.