Long queues at Sri Lanka fuel stations in wake of Iran turmoil

Published March 2, 2026 Updated March 2, 2026 03:40pm

Long queues have formed at fuel stations across Sri Lanka as the conflict in Iran fed fears of oil shortages in the island nation, which is still recovering from a deep financial crisis, Reuters reports.

Many people were panic buying despite assurances from the authorities that Sri Lanka had enough stocks of diesel and petrol to last 35 and 37 days, respectively — the full amount that the country usually stores.

“There is fuel. People are panicking because of the war and they are themselves creating these lines. So people are just flocking to the stations, but there is enough fuel in Sri Lanka,” said Mohammed Aslem, a 36-year-old three-wheeler driver standing in a fuel queue in Colombo.

“Sri Lanka does not have enough storage facilities to store fuel beyond the next few weeks, but there are sufficient confirmed shipments till the end of this month,” said S. Rajakaruna, chairman of the state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation told reporters.

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