The energy minister has said 53 ships carrying fuel are on their way to Australia and are expected to arrive this month — but not everyone feels reassured.
Chris Bowen said there were 3.7 billion litres of fuel on board, which would help alleviate concerns about fuel supply chains.
“Asian refineries don’t just supply Australia, they supply Asia too. That’s how it generally works,” he says.
“Of course, we’ve been in constant contact, the prime minister, the foreign minister and I with our respective counterparts, and we’re very pleased with the way those conversations have gone.”
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Chris Bowen says there’s 3.7 billion litres of fuel on its way to Australia. (ABC News: David Sciasci)
However, some industry stakeholders are not as optimistic.
“Just because 53 [ships] are on their way doesn’t mean 53 will get here,” says the CEO of trucking company Cold Xpress, John Di Losa.
At the end of last month, six fuel tankers that were scheduled to deliver oil to Australia were cancelled or deferred, out of about 81 ships expected from mid-April to mid-May.
John Di Losa is skeptical that all 53 ships of fuel will make it to Australia. (ABC News: Darryl Torpy)
“Some ships were delayed and others cancelled … for transport and regional operators, what matters most is certainty,” Mr Di Losa said.
The ships are coming from refineries around the world, including in Asia, the United States and Mexico.
Australia and Singapore have signed a joint commitment to continue the trade of fuels, with the government seeking to land similar deals with other Asian nations, which Mr Bowen says will help alleviate concerns about fuel supply chains.
Despite billions of litres, it’s not enough
While these ships could bring some reprieve for road transport companies, the industry said it was struggling well before the war in the Middle East, with one in 12 operators closing their doors last year.
John Di Losa says his customers are complaining about the fuel levy. (ABC News: Darryl Torpy)
Mr Di Losa, who has up to 180 trucks on the road on any given day, said the increasing costs had been passed on to his clients.
“We are already feeling the pinch … my customers are complaining about the fuel levy, having said that, they do understand [because] Easter sales are up,” he said.
“The test will be after Easter.”
Matt Barrie says this announcement doesn’t cover a month of fuel supply needed across Australia. (Supplied: Freelancer )
Matt Barrie, the executive chairman of Loadshift, one of Australia’s largest online freight marketplaces, said the numbers announced by the energy minister only sounded impressive on the surface.
“Australia burns through roughly 4.5 billion litres a month, so we’re not even covering a full month’s consumption,” he said.
“And what happens next month?”
He said this announcement “highlights the vulnerability more than it solves it”.
“We’re celebrating 53 ships of imported fuel supposedly arriving like it’s a win — it should be a wake-up call,” he said.
“There should never have been a fuel excise on domestically refined fuels in the first place.”
At the start of the week, the Commonwealth agreed to halve the fuel excise on petrol and diesel by 26.3 cents a litre in an effort to moderate rising prices.
Then on Thursday morning, premiers and chief ministers from around the nation agreed to use that extra revenue — estimated to reach around $400 million by the end of June — to fund a further 5.7 cents per litre cut in the fuel excise.
It will bring the total reduction to 32 cents per litre until June 30.
Stations without fuel
Meanwhile, the number of service stations across the country without fuel is rising.
The number of Australian service stations running on empty is on the rise. (AAP: Dean Lewins)
Mr Bowen has revealed a total of 410 stations across the country are out of diesel and another 145 stations are out of unleaded petrol.
In New South Wales, 48 stations are out of stock altogether.
The minister said the diesel shortage was worst in New South Wales.
Track the latest petrol and diesel prices around Australia
“That’s mainly because it’s sowing and seeding time, and the companies are rightly, in my view, concentrating on getting that fuel to farmers,” he said.
“So they can get their seeds in the ground, so that they can continue to feed us over coming weeks and months.”
This is the full breakdown of the fuel shortages by state and territory:
NSW: 182 stations are out of diesel, with 48 fully out of stockVIC: 76 stations out of diesel, 37 out of unleadedQLD: 75 stations out of diesel, 24 out of unleadedSA: 28 out of diesel, 15 out of unleadedWA: 37 stations out of diesel, 58 out of unleadedTAS: 7 stations out of diesel, 7 out of unleadedNT: 5 stations out of diesel, 4 out of unleaded
Mr Bowen said: “Refineries and petrol companies are working hard to refill that stock over the Easter break.
“So that those Australians who rely on diesel can know that the diesel is flowing as quickly as it can.”
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