UK diverts scarce fuel to gas stations, not big business, Energy News, ET EnergyWorld

UK government officials have called on executives of the UK fuel terminal network to instead send tankers bound for large companies to garages and gas stations, citing industry sources. The newspaper also reported that the government said it did not order fuel deliveries to be diverted.
Britain has been gripped by a wave of panic buying that has left gas stations running dry in major cities. Oil companies have warned that they do not have enough tanker drivers to transport gasoline and diesel from refineries to gas stations.
The government ordered soldiers to start driving tankers to fill empty pumps as motorists got stuck in queues after nearly a week of shortages.
The UK government did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment, but a spokesperson told the newspaper that it was “just plain wrong” to suggest officials had ordered oil companies to divert supplies.
“There has always been and still is a lot of fuel in refineries and terminals and we are now seeing signs that the situation at the pumps has started to improve with more and more stations receiving more fuel,” said the spokesperson quoted by the newspaper.