DFDS is speaking to freight customers about how it might have to pass on some of the “real costs” it is facing as a result of fuel price hikes driven by the war in the Middle East.
Jersey route director Chris Parker told the JEP in the Saturday Interview that the Danish shipping firm would do what it could to absorb costs, but that “ultimately, we are going to have to share that pain until prices drop again”.
His comments come just as the conflict’s potential impact on local travel links has started to emerge, with Guernsey-owned airline Aurigny announcing the introduction of a temporary fuel surcharge.
Aurigny has said that fuel now represents “almost a third of an airline’s costs” and that these have been driven up by “extreme fluctuations” linked to the conflict in the Middle East.
The US-Israeli campaign against Iran is affecting shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, with the International Energy Agency warning that “the loss of supply is having significant impacts in global markets”, pushing up prices for crude oil above $100 per barrel and “leading to much higher prices for some refined products”, including diesel, jet fuel and liquefied petroleum gas.
“The conflict in the Middle East has created the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market,” an IEA report stated.
“The volume of fuel supply offline now is higher than the supply loss during the oil shock of 1973 that led to the IEA’s creation and any disruption since then.”
DFDS Jersey route director Chris Parker said that there would undoubtedly be an increase in the shipping firm’s fuel bill because of the war.
But he explained there would be a slight delay because of the way it purchased fuel, and that it was already speaking to its freight customers about how its prices might be passed on.
“We have to be open about it and say that these are real costs that we are facing, and we cannot absorb all of them,” he said.
“We do what we can, but, ultimately, we are going to have to share that pain until prices drop again.”
The JEP also approached Brittany Ferries for comment, but did not receive a response by the time of going to print.
A spokesperson for Loganair said the Scottish airline could not currently provide comment but confirmed that “there is no additional surcharge at this point”.
