The Central Bank of Myanmar announced that it sold US$9.72 million to fuel-importing companies on December 18.

According to the Ministry of Energy, plans are underway to use an online permit system to distribute fuel from Thilawa port in Yangon to various states and regions of Myanmar.

Deputy Minister for Energy U Thant Sin, who is also the chairman of the Fuel Import, Storage and Distribution Supervisory Committee, visited the oil depots at Thilawa Port in Thanlyin Township, Yangon Region, on December 15.

During the visit, the deputy minister said that the system of manually obtaining permits for oil bowsers would be replaced by an online system. He also called for installing software and supervising fuel purchases and consumption. He stressed the need for filling stations to provide quality fuel and services and for responsible officials to prevent fuel spillage during loading and unloading.

Previously, fuel quotas for filling stations had to be obtained from designated terminals and they were transported to various regions and states. Now, the new plan is to seek online permits to transport fuel to those regions.

U Than Zaw, Secretary of the Fuel Import, Storage and Distribution Supervisory Committee, said that there were long queues to buy fuel at filling stations in Nay Pyi Taw, Yangon, Mandalay and some other regions and states. He attributed this to panic buying following the rumors about fuel shortages and price hikes. He said that people were buying more than their normal consumption amounts.

He said that overseas, the fuel that had already been purchased for Myanmar was being loaded onto oil tankers, and there were other oil tankers still arriving after being filled with oil. He assured that there would be continuous processes such as loading fuel purchased by Myanmar onto vessels, oil tankers waiting at the mouth of the sea and unloading fuel at the ports.