Fuel tankers from the ‘big four’ supermarkets - Tesco,
Sainsbury’s Asda and Morrisons - have been caught filling up at
an Essex oil terminal where a shipment of Russian diesel arrived
this week.
Supermarket tankers were filmed on Wednesday May 18 and Thursday
May 19 arriving at Navigator Terminals, just hours after a
33,000-tonne shipment was delivered. Fuel trucks from Tesco,
Sainsbury’s and Morrisons were then tracked and pictured
offloading diesel at forecourt storage tanks in Norfolk and
Bedford [1], meaning drivers could be unwittingly filling up on
diesel that is directly funding Putin’s war in Ukraine. An Asda
tanker was also pictured leaving Navigator Terminals but could
not be tracked to its destination.
Greenpeace has written to all four supermarkets demanding an
explanation, and asking them to call on the government to ban
Russian fossil fuels from entering the UK.
Greenpeace UK oil and gas campaigner, Elena Polisano,
said: “Supermarkets were quick to remove Russian vodka
from shelves and rename their chicken Kievs as chicken
Kyivs.
“Customers will be outraged if supermarkets are asking them to
donate to Ukraine at the till, but passing their money to Putin
at the pump.
“If Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons truly want to stand by
Ukraine, they should make sure they’re not filling their pumps
with Putin’s diesel that is directly funding his bloody war. At
the very least, they should demand that the government implement
an immediate ban on imports of Russian fossil fuels.”
These revelations come as new polling from YouGov, commissioned
by Greenpeace UK, shows how 73% of people want the UK government
to bring in an immediate ban on imports of Russian oil and gas
[2].
The YouGov poll shows that the vast majority (74%) of the British
public are unaware that fuel on sale at supermarket petrol
stations may contain Russian diesel and most (71%) want
supermarkets to immediately end the sale of Russian
diesel.
This latest shipment of diesel was imported into Navigator
Terminals, Essex, on Tuesday [MAY 17], a day later than planned,
following a Greenpeace protest blocking
the tanker’s intended berth [3]. Activists succeeded in
delaying the shipment for 37 hours but police arrests meant that
the cargo was eventually offloaded on the second attempt.
On Wednesday and Thursday supermarket tankers arrived to fuel up
from Navigator Terminals, and campaigners then followed those
tanker lorries to supermarket forecourts, where they offloaded
their cargo.
The UK has declared a ban on the arrival of
Russian flagged and Russian owned vessels, but Russian fossil
fuels are still arriving via ships
registered to other countries. And! the government’s ban on
Russian oil imports is still more than seven months away.
Greenpeace has launched a Tanker Tracker which makes
it possible to see when tanker shipments of fossil fuels are
leaving Russia, and when they’re set to arrive in ports in the UK
and around the world.
Greenpeace has contacted each of the four supermarkets for
comment. The British Retail Consortium confirmed that Russian
diesel had not yet been phased out.
Andrew Opie, Director for Food at the BRC, said:
“Our members are fully committed to phasing out Russian oil in
line with the Government’s decision and are working to do so as
quickly as possible while ensuring good supply for customers."
A Sainsbury’s spokesperson said: “We stand
together with the people of Ukraine and have taken a range of
steps to show our support – from helping to fund the humanitarian
effort on the ground, to removing products from our stores which
are 100% sourced from Russia.
“Today we have confirmed that we are already working to reduce
the amount of diesel we sell which comes from Russia and we will
stop selling diesel from Russia in our petrol filling stations in
line with the UK’s action against Russian oil imports, by the end
of the year.
“This is a complex process which we are committed to working
together with the rest of the UK fuel industry and Government to
achieve, as part of the UK’s action against Russian oil imports.”
ENDS
Notes to editor:
- Greenpeace identified tankers leaving
Navigator Terminals and delivering fuel to the following
forecourts:
- Tesco forecourt: Old Market Rd, Stalham,
Norwich NR12 9AE.
- Sainsbury’s: Saxon Centre, 252-274 Bedford Rd,
Kempston, Bedford MK42 8AY
- Morrisons: Victoria Rd, Diss IP22 4XF
An Asda tanker was pictured leaving Navigator Terminals but
Greenpeace campaigners were unable to follow it to its
destination.
2. YouGov survey on May 9th-10th 2022. A poll of 1,716 people
showed that 73% supported a ban, 5% did not support a ban and 10%
answered ‘don’t know’.
3. Tanker carrying 33,000 tonnes of
Russian diesel forced to U-turn by Greenpeace activists
Monday 16/05/22
