Goundar Shipping Limited has sounded the alarm over an escalating fuel access problem for Fiji’s outer islands after its vessels were repeatedly denied fuel on three recent trips to the Lau Group and Rotuma. In a statement, the company said those refusals occurred over the past two weeks and have left shipping services struggling to meet routine deliveries and essential transport needs for remote maritime communities.
The operator said fuel suppliers repeatedly refused to release fuel for customers along the routes it was servicing, forcing vessels to continue without replenishment. Goundar told authorities the situation is “deeply concerning,” stressing that reliable fuel access is essential not only for livelihoods—fishing, trading and transport—but also for critical services such as the transfer of medical patients between islands and emergency response operations.
Goundar Shipping has called on the Fijian Government to urgently investigate why fuel earmarked for outer-island services is not being dispensed to vessels if national stocks are, as the company contends, sufficient. The company also raised the prospect that supplies may be deliberately withheld, possibly in anticipation of imminent price increases, and urged regulators and fuel firms to provide full clarity and transparency about distribution practices.
The allegation shifts attention from headline worries about global price volatility to the mechanics of domestic fuel distribution. Fiji imports all of its fuel, and watchdogs have warned in recent weeks that international tensions and supply shocks could push up local pump prices. But Goundar’s claim suggests the immediate problem for many maritime communities may be access rather than only cost—vessels arriving to refuel and being turned away can leave islanders cut off from food, medical evacuations and vital goods.
The company did not name the specific suppliers that denied fuel on the trips, nor provide details on whether any emergency fuel reserves were tapped or alternative arrangements made for affected islanders. Goundar has called on both government agencies and the country’s fuel companies to explain the refusals and to confirm whether stock levels are being managed nationally and distributed to meet outer-island demand.
It is unclear whether the Ministry of Commerce, Trade, and Tourism or major fuel distributors have opened inquiries in response to Goundar’s statement. The company warned that any prolonged disruption to fuel access would have serious consequences for daily life and essential services across Fiji’s maritime islands, and pressed for prompt government intervention to avert further risk to health, livelihoods and safety.
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