Dozens of Colombian Flights Cancelled Due to Low Fuel Stocks

AFP/APP

Bogotá: Airlines on Monday scrapped dozens of flights from Colombia, blaming dwindling fuel stocks — the cause of which industry officials and the government disagree about.

National carrier Avianca, which according to Colombia’s air transport regulator canceled 24 flights Monday, said in a statement it had been advised by suppliers of a cap on kerosene deliveries “for the rest of the month.”

Avianca flights to São Paulo, Santiago, Mexico City, and Cancun were affected, according to the FlightAware tracking platform.

For its part, Latin America’s largest airline, LATAM, said it has had to cancel 36 flights scheduled for Tuesday due to “restrictions on the supply of Jet A1 aviation fuel in some airports.”

State oil company Ecopetrol said an “electrical failure” had affected production at the Cartagena Refinery (Reficar) between August 16 and 18. Ecopetrol announced it would import 100,000 barrels of aviation fuel, possibly leading to an increase in ticket prices, according to the transport ministry.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) warned on Sunday that a fuel shortage would lead to flight cancellations and flights carrying fewer passengers per plane. According to IATA, which represents more than 300 airlines, distributors suspended fuel supply to 11 terminals, while for many others they issued alerts for “critical” stock levels.

The international airport in Bogotá, a key hub in Latin America, has enough fuel for seven days of operation. In Medellín, the country’s second-largest city, there are two days of reserves, said Ecopetrol president Ricardo Roa.

The Aerocivil airport authority, however, insisted jet fuel stocks were “sufficient.”

President Gustavo Petro, who at first denied there was any problem, later blamed the situation on fuel distributor Terpel, owned by Chilean oil company Copec, and said there would be “investigations” by market regulators.

Terpel, for its part, blamed problems at the Reficar refinery.