Peru Taps Fuel Reserves to Combat Worst Energy Crunch in Two Decades

Peru is tapping fuel reserves after a major gas pipeline rupture slashed supplies and forced export suspensions, triggering the country’s worst energy crisis in two decades.

(Reuters) — Peru will draw on fuel reserves to safeguard domestic supply, Prime Minister Denisse Miralles said on March 6, after a gas pipeline rupture triggered the most severe energy crisis in two decades.

The government will urge public and private‑sector employees to work remotely while shifting schools to online learning, she added.

SEE MORE: Peru Pipeline Leak Halts Pluspetrol Gas Production, Disrupts LPG Supply

The emergency measures follow suspension of natural gas exports on March 5 as Peru scrambles to contain the fallout from the gas‑pipeline rupture on Sunday that choked energy supplies and triggered a major power crunch.

"The reduction in the gas supply has been tremendous... only 10% is being delivered," Energy and Mines Minister Angelo Alfaro told Congress on March 5.

The National Chamber of Mining, Oil and Energy (SNMPE) on Friday said its members were working to minimize the impact on the population and are looking to import an LPG shipment in "record time."

Peru is the world's second-largest copper producer, making the mining sector a critical pillar of its economy and a major consumer of its domestic energy supply.

Operator Transportadora de Gas del Peru (TGP) shut down a section of the pipeline in the Megantoni district to isolate the leak. The company implemented temporary restrictions on gas supplies to industrial and electricity sector users to prioritize residential and essential services.

The outage forced energy firm Pluspetrol to suspend production of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) at its Pisco fractionation plant, which accounts for approximately 70% of Peru's LPG consumption.