More than 170 service stations are still without diesel as Australia braces for ongoing uncertainty and lasting economic pain from the energy crisis.
A temporary ceasefire between the US and Iran has been brokered but disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz are ongoing, with Federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen warning of a “long tail” after the conflict.
“Even if it opened today, there’s a big backlog of ships, there’s been gas plants bombed out of existence,” he told reporters on Saturday.
“The international energy situation will take a long time to recover from this. This is not over.”
Australia has 38 days’ supply of petrol, 31 days of diesel and 28 days of jet fuel.
Diesel – a key fuel for freight and agriculture that flows through to grocery prices – has experienced a two-day improvement in reserves, while petrol and jet fuel have slipped modestly.
While the government assures ships are still arriving in Australia and 4.1 billion litres of fuel have been locked in, prices at the pump remain elevated and some service stations are still dry, particularly in regional areas.
A total of 173 service stations across Australia are out of diesel, representing 2.2 per cent of all refuelling stops.
NSW petrol stations are the most likely to be out of fuel.
Australia has been ramping up diplomatic efforts to secure fuel supplies, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese meeting with his Singaporean counterpart this week.
Mr Albanese and Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong inked an agreement to continue trading large quantities of fuel and gas between the two nations.
The deal stated the countries would “make maximum efforts to meet each other’s energy security needs” but no specific guarantee was made to prioritise Australia if Singapore’s refineries were forced to reduce output.
Australia has also been working to diversify its fuel supply chains beyond Southeast Asia, securing supplies from South American countries and Algeria.
The federal opposition has been calling for better energy self-reliance, with National Party leader Matt Canavan suggesting Australia should make better use of its oil and gas resources rather than relying on trading partners.
The federal government has also halved the fuel excise tax in response to the energy crisis.
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