Pacific Business Briefs: Relief at the pump, Samoa’s labour migration, Fiji’s waste-to-energy controversy

Maximum diesel prices are coming down fast in Fiji, Tonga and Samoa.

It comes as the Asian Development Bank doles out massive cash, and a peace deal on the horizon puts downward pressure on global oil prices.

In Viti Levu, the diesel price cap more than doubled from February to June. But in last week’s budget announcement, Fiji’s Finance Minister Esrom Immanuel promised massive fuel price reductions, and massive they were.

The price cap has decreased by 26 percent compared to last month, lower than it was in May but slightly higher than in April. Countrywide, there are diesel price reductions of more than a dollar.

The Fijian Consumer and Competition Commission (FCCC), which sets the maximum prices, said it was cautiously optimistic.

“These reductions reflect improving global market conditions following progress in ceasefire negotiations and peace discussions in the Middle East, which have eased pressure on international fuel prices after months of volatility,” the FCCC said in a statement.

“Although recent developments are encouraging, FCCC cautions that global fuel markets remain vulnerable to geopolitical events and prices may continue to fluctuate as the global energy market recovers.”

In Samoa, it is a similar story. The diesel price cap down 16 percent, having climbed 77 percent since the war began.

While in Tonga, it is down 17 percent, having climbed by 63 percent.

It was revealed this week that Fiji’s spending on petroleum products more than doubled in the first month of the crisis alone.

According to trade statistics for April 2026, fuel imports from Singapore rose by 162 percent compared to April 2025.

Compared to March, the country spent US$64 million more on fuel products, mostly diesel, while amount spent on jet fuel more than tripled during that time.

Tonga, which buys fuel from Fiji, doubled its spend in that month also.

A new survey suggests that nearly half of Samoan businesses have lost workers due to labour migration.

The Samoa Chamber of Commerce and Industry said, in a new report, that the retail, hospitality, tourism and manufacturing sectors are losing the most people at the fastest rate.

“Labour migration is placing material pressure on Samoa’s private sector through workforce departures, skills shortages, staff retention costs, replacement challenges and productivity impacts,” the report read.

“At the same time, Samoa continues to benefit significantly from labour mobility through overseas employment opportunities, remittances and worker experience. The key policy challenge is therefore not to reduce the value of labour mobility, but to better balance its benefits.”

The key labour mobility pathways that emerged from business responses were the RSE scheme, New Zealand’s Samoan Quota, the PALM scheme, and the StarKist tuna company.

“The impact is concentrated in skilled and semi-skilled roles, indicating that businesses are losing experienced workers who are important to daily operations, productivity, service delivery and business continuity.”

“Some employers reported difficulty replacing workers, increased wage and incentive costs, and declining productivity.”

The Samoa Observer reported in February that Samoa’s government put a cap on how many Samoans could participate in seasonal work schemes.

The limits are 3000 each to New Zealand and Australia, and 1,000 to American Samoa.

The company behind a waste-to-energy part at Vuda Point that sparked community outrage throughout Fiji is not done yet.

The Next Generation Ltd (TNG) had its proposal tossed by the Fiji’s Department of Environment last month when it sought permission to begin planning.

They reviewed an Environmental Impact Assessment that spelled out how the plant would generate 80 megawatts by burning up to 900,000 tonnes of waste a year, far exceeding Fiji’s local waste production, requiring the import of waste from across the South Pacific – namely Australia and New Zealand.

Activists called it “waste colonialism” and some of them claimed that TNG had been pressuring local landowners to sell to them, and that many were willing. A petition opposing the project garnered 9000 signatures.

When it was declined, TNG backer Rob Cromb vowed to keep the dream alive.

“This appeal is about ensuring that decisions on nationally significant projects are made through a process that is complete, transparent, evidence-based and consistent with the Environment Management Act,” he said.

“The Pacific faces a waste crisis and an energy crisis simultaneously. This project addresses both. The net environmental benefit is unambiguous,”

Cromb argued that TNG was not treated fairly during consideration, with grievances ranging from not receiving advance notice of technical questions, never getting to respond to third party submissions, that the panel had ignored parts of it, and that their response had essentially been decided before TNG met with them.

TNG Fiji is refusing to speak on the matter until they get their day at Fiji’s Environmental Tribunal.