Haiti’s fuel market: how imports work and where the risks are

Haiti has no refinery. Every litre of gasoline, diesel and kerosene it consumes arrives by sea. That makes the country a steady importer of refined products, but also one of the most demanding markets in the Caribbean to supply. The difficulty is rarely the product itself. It lies in what happens after the vessel arrives: a price fixed by the state in gourdes, a heavy reliance on terminals in Port-au-Prince, and roads where armed groups control movement.

This article explains how the market is organised in 2026, where the main risks are, and what suppliers and buyers can do to manage them.

How the market is organised

The Haitian state no longer imports fuel itself. Licensed private companies, grouped in the association APPE, order their own cargoes. The Bureau de Monétisation des Programmes d’Aide au Développement (BMPAD) now has a narrower role: it manages the tender for freight and carries out quality control. According to the U.S. Commerce Department, only a handful of companies are authorised to import fuel directly.

Pump prices are not set by the market. They are fixed in gourdes by the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. A decree of 27 March 2026 introduced an automatic adjustment mechanism, with thresholds and caps on how quickly prices can move, and created a consultative council of state, importer and transport representatives that recommends each change.

The mechanism has already been used in both directions. After the oil price shock linked to the Middle East, pump prices rose on 2 April 2026 by 37% for diesel and 29% for gasoline. In July 2026, following lower international prices, they were cut to 650 gourdes per gallon for gasoline, 700 for diesel and 690 for kerosene.

Where the fuel comes from

Haiti buys refined products on the international market, mainly gasoline and diesel, with smaller volumes of kerosene and jet fuel. The United States is one of its suppliers: U.S. government data show 226,000 barrels of petroleum products exported to Haiti in June 2026, of which 121,000 barrels were gasoline and 101,000 barrels were diesel and other distillates. Cargoes are typically delivered by product tanker to terminals in the Port-au-Prince area and to a small number of provincial ports.

Risk 1: one dominant terminal in a contested area

Terminal Varreux, north of Port-au-Prince near Cité Soleil, is the country’s largest oil terminal and the main loading point for tanker trucks supplying the capital and much of the country. Its location has made it a repeated target:

• In 2021, a gang blockade halted deliveries from the terminal for about a month, until a negotiated truce in November.
• From 11 November 2024, the terminal closed because of armed violence in the area. Service stations in Port-au-Prince and in provincial towns ran out of stock, even though fuel remained in the terminal’s tanks.
• On 10 August 2026, shots were fired at oil tankers during renewed clashes between armed groups in Cité Soleil. ACLED recorded at least 424 deaths in gang clashes in the first seven months of 2026, nearly double the total for all of 2025.

Other port facilities, including Thor and Lafito near the capital and the ports of Cap-Haïtien and Miragoâne, have stayed open at times when others were disrupted. Diverting a fuel cargo to them depends on available tank capacity, and it means extra freight, delay and new inland logistics. In 2024, the marine insurer NorthStandard advised vessels to wait 20–25 nautical miles offshore until called in, to berth in daylight and to arrange armed security with their agents.

Risk 2: getting fuel from the terminal to the buyer

Discharging the cargo is only half the delivery. Tanker trucks must then reach service stations, power plants, hospitals and businesses. In 2026, armed groups control stretches of the main national roads, RN1, RN2 and RN3, where they impose illegal tolls and restrict movement. After the April price increase, transport costs rose by more than 50% on some routes.

The security response is under way. A new police station has been set up in Varreux, and the UN-backed Gang Suppression Force has started operations in the capital, but its own representatives describe it as being at an early stage. Elections are scheduled for 13 December 2026, and periods of political tension have historically coincided with disruption to fuel supply.

Risk 3: currency, payment and paperwork

Cargoes are priced in U.S. dollars, while pump prices are fixed in gourdes. Businesses in Haiti report that foreign currency is often hard to obtain, and that customs clearance is slow, with most importers relying on local agents. For a supplier, this makes payment security the central issue: a buyer with a valid import licence may still struggle to transfer dollars on time.

How the delivered cost builds up

With the pump price fixed, any of these costs that rises unexpectedly comes out of someone’s margin. The contract decides whose.

What suppliers and buyers should check before committing

• Confirm the buyer’s licence and standing. Verify that the buyer is authorised to import, and identify its beneficial owners and signatories.
• Agree an alternative discharge port. Name a second terminal in the contract and state who pays for diversion if Port-au-Prince is closed.
• Set clear laytime and demurrage terms. Waiting offshore during unrest is a real risk; decide in advance who bears it.
• Secure payment before loading. Use cash in escrow released against inspection and delivery documents, or an SBLC verified with the issuing bank. Avoid open credit.
• Use independent inspection. Check quality and quantity at loading and discharge, in addition to BMPAD’s own controls.
• Plan the security of the vessel and the trucks. Work with an experienced local agent on berthing, escorts and delivery routes.

This article is for general information only. It does not constitute an offer to sell, or legal, tax or investment advice. Figures are taken from the public sources listed and may change.