FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
9 April 2025
‘Fossilflation’ likely despite ceasefire, governments must act now
Pacific – 350.org Pacific welcomes the announcement of a two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran as a first step, but raises concerns over its fragility and limited scope, which leaves the risk of persistently high fossil fuel prices.
‘Fossilflation’ – or inflation caused by volatile and rising prices of oil and gas – is still likely to continue, due to the fragility of the ceasefire arrangement and extensively damaged fossil fuel infrastructure. 350.org said that governments must use this opportunity to double down on efforts to protect people from oil and price shocks and accelerate the shift away from fossil fuels.
350.org has calculated that price spikes due to the Iran war have cost consumers and businesses an additional $104.2–$111.6 billion in the first month of the war alone.
Pacific Island countries, heavily reliant on diesel imports, felt the shocks of fossil fuel instability in multiple sectors, with Northern Mariana Islands considering “loadshedding”, the Marshall Islands declaring a 90-day emergency, and several other countries experiencing fuel price spikes.
Fenton Lutunatabua, 350.org Pacific and Caribbean Team Lead says,
“While the two-week ceasefire is welcome, we need a permanent end to violence and war. The repercussions of this war in particular have shown us just how vulnerable fossil fuel dependence makes us, as Pacific Island countries. Even if the Strait of Hormuz reopens and the ceasefire holds, oil and gas prices will stay above pre-war levels and consumers will pay. The fuel price increase in Fiji alone is going to hit our market vendors just as hard as the recent Cyclone Vaianu damage, doubling the obstacles they need to overcome to earn a living. Unless we end our reliance on fossil fuels, we will continue to be at the mercy of political instability thousands of miles away. This is our opportunity to move beyond fossil fuels, to become energy independent as a region, with a switch to renewable energy.”
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