STRIKE OF FUEL TRANSPORTERS IN PORTUGAL

STRIKE OF FUEL TRANSPORTERS IN PORTUGAL

On August 12, a strike of fuel transporters in Portugal began. The government of António Costa decided to put the country in energy crisis and these until August 21.

The government imposes certain rules that will affect users, including the use of the army to provide minimum service. From now on, each car will only be able to fill a maximum of 25 liters of fuel.

A real energy crisis

On Monday evening, the government declared a state of energy crisis throughout the country until August 21. User refueling is limited to 25 liters of fuel for light vehicles and 100 liters for heavy goods vehicles.

Please note that this only applies to stations that are not considered to be priority stations. At these stations, only 15 liters of fuel will be available per car. The situation is already very tense, with many stations already running out of diesel.

Minimum service implemented

On Monday August 12, the Portuguese government decided to requisition truck drivers on the first day of a strike by fuel transporters in Portugal, who are demanding higher wages.

According to Tiago Antumes, government spokesman "There was no other solution".These remarks were made at the end of an extraordinary Council of Ministers meeting held late on Sunday. The measure will be implemented "in regions and sectors where minimum services have not been respected"he added, citing in particular the supply of airports and the Algarve region, where many Portuguese and foreign tourists spend their vacations.

After noting that minimum services had been respected in the morning, Prime Minister Antonio Costa declared that the situation had evolved negatively, paving the way for the requisition of truckers.

Army requisitioned to provide minimum service

The Portuguese judiciary asserts that "this strike by the transporters is within the limits of what is permissible", but the opinion rejects any stance on the legality of the claim. "It depends on the courts." The same opinion states that minimum services can and should be extended to "protect other rights and interests". The Attorney General says that for this "what is necessary is the progressive extension of minimum services".

The Portuguese judiciary has indicated that preventive civil requisitioning with the intervention of the army is possible and legal. The government has stated that this has not yet been decreed, but that it has not ruled out this hypothesis.

18 % service stations completely dry

Anticipating the difficulties of refueling, many motorists had filled up before the movement began. On Monday afternoon, around 18 % of the some 3,000 service stations of the country were completely dry, and as many were short of at least one type of fuel.