Montenegro has yet to meet the 90-day emergency petroleum-supply requirement, despite establishing a mandatory strategic-reserve system and beginning work to upgrade state-owned storage facilities at the Port of Bar. The shortfall comes as domestic petroleum-product consumption increased by around 20% between 2021 and 2025, raising the volume of fuel stocks needed to maintain emergency coverage.
The Energy Community’s 2026 oil-market review identified Montenegro, Serbia and North Macedonia as countries that have introduced mandatory petroleum reserves but have not yet accumulated the full required quantities. Montenegro adopted an oil-supply emergency plan as part of its efforts to strengthen energy security. The government is also rehabilitating three storage tanks at the Port of Bar, with a combined capacity of approximately 17,600 cubic metres. The rehabilitation forms part of the country’s efforts to establish mandatory oil reserves and bring its energy-security framework into alignment with European Union requirements.
The current number of days of emergency supply covered by Montenegro’s existing reserves has not been publicly confirmed. Without that figure, the remaining gap to the 90-day benchmark and the associated investment requirements cannot be quantified precisely. Reaching the full requirement will involve additional storage capacity, purchases of petroleum stocks and improvements to reserve-management systems. The increase in fuel consumption also means that Montenegro needs larger physical volumes of petroleum products to maintain the same level of emergency coverage.
The reserve shortfall has implications for fuel importers, transport operators and other parts of the economy that depend on reliable petroleum supplies. Montenegro remains heavily reliant on imported petroleum products, exposing the country to international price increases, shipping disruptions and shortages affecting regional fuel markets.
Maintaining strategic reserves would not eliminate these risks, but sufficient stocks would provide the government with additional time to respond to temporary supply interruptions. The development of mandatory reserves therefore requires more than regulatory changes. Montenegro must also finance physical storage infrastructure, acquire the necessary petroleum stocks and establish systems to manage and maintain emergency supplies as it works towards meeting European Union energy-security requirements.
