The Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company, MIFCO, has sharply increased the price of diesel it sells to fishermen and the general public, in a move that comes as global energy markets remain under strain from the ongoing Middle East crisis.
According to reporting by Adhadhu, the revised prices took effect today, with diesel now sold to fishermen who sell their catch to MIFCO at MVR 27.24 per litre. Diesel sold to the general public has been set at MVR 28.54 per litre.
The increase marks a steep jump from the rates announced on Fishermen’s Day last year. At that time, President Mohamed Muizzu said diesel would be sold to fishermen at MVR 13.90 per litre, and at MVR 13.72 per litre for those selling more than three tonnes of catch. Diesel for the general public was priced at MVR 14.43 per litre.
Based on those figures, the latest revision means the diesel price paid by fishermen has risen by about MVR 13.34 per litre, while the public price has increased by MVR 14.11 per litre. For the fisheries sector, where fuel is one of the largest direct operating costs, the increase is likely to be felt immediately in the cost of going to sea.
The price hike also comes at a time of severe disruption in international oil markets. Reuters reported on 16 March that Brent and U.S. crude have surged more than 40 percent this month after Tehran halted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for about a fifth of global oil and LNG supplies.
That matters directly for the Maldives. As a small island economy that depends heavily on imported fuel, the country remains highly exposed to supply-chain shocks when conflict disrupts shipping lanes or pushes up global energy prices. The World Bank has previously noted that the Maldives imported more than 700,000 metric tons of fuel in 2019, with diesel accounting for 80 percent of that total.
In practical terms, even if the Maldives does not buy fuel directly from one conflict zone, a prolonged crisis centred on Hormuz can still raise replacement costs, shipping charges, insurance premiums and the overall landed price of fuel. For import-dependent countries such as the Maldives, that leaves little room to absorb sudden external shocks.
This is not the first time MIFCO has raised diesel prices sharply during an international crisis. As reported by Adhadhu, one of the largest previous hikes came in June 2022, when global oil prices surged after the war in Ukraine. At that time, MIFCO sold diesel to fishing vessels at MVR 17.63 per litre and to the general public at MVR 22.66 per litre, before later reducing prices when global markets eased.
The latest increase now pushes MIFCO’s diesel prices well above those earlier levels, underlining how quickly turmoil abroad can feed into daily economic life in the Maldives. For fishermen in particular, the Middle East crisis is no longer only a distant geopolitical story, but a direct cost issue that is now being felt at the pump.
