The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, has managed to guarantee an extra supply of 200,000 tons per month of diesel from the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. This agreement, forged during the French head of state's tour of several countries in the Persian Gulf, aims to secure energy supply and contain the rise in prices at the country's gas stations.
These new shipments, whose distribution in France will be handled by the French oil company TotalEnergies, are in addition to a previous commitment reached with Saudi Arabia for a volume of 95,000 tons for the months of October and November, according to the newspaper "Le Monde." In total, these exceptional shipments represent "approximately 10 percent of national diesel consumption," according to sources from the Élysée cited by the French newspaper.
The CEO of TotalEnergies, Patrick Pouyanné, who is part of the delegation accompanying Macron on this official trip, has emphasized the strategic relevance of the pact. "We are on a mission to ensure supply because there is a risk. This will reassure the French. We will not lack diesel this winter," Pouyanné assured from Abu Dhabi, after admitting that the company feared greater pressure in the hydrocarbon market due to the "impact of the Ukrainian attacks on Russia."
The initiative of the French Executive comes in a context of strong internal social unrest, marked by the serious disturbances and protests of the past weekend, fueled by the rising cost of living. To cushion the economic impact derived from the war that began in February between Israel, the United States, and Iran, which triggered the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, Paris had already put ten million barrels of its strategic reserves on the market, a decision that allowed fuel prices at the pumps to decrease by 12 to 18 cents.
From the French Presidency, it is claimed that the result of these energy negotiations is explained by the "trust" in Paris as a "reliable partner" in the protection of Gulf States during the conflict.
However, aside from these urgent solutions, the Élysée and its Arab allies remain uneasy about the reciprocal blockade in Hormuz imposed by Washington and Tehran. According to "Le Monde," the Gulf monarchies fear an escalation of the confrontation once the midterm elections in the United States are held, scheduled for next November 3. French diplomacy, for its part, warns of the serious risk that, after seven months of crisis, the region could become permanently trapped in "a gray zone, neither peace nor war, that fuels long-term instability."