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\nNew Zealand is preparing for a prolonged conflict in the Middle East as attacks on the world’s largest natural gasfield create even more uncertainty at the pump.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Quin Tauetau\n<\/p>\n
New Zealand is preparing for a prolonged conflict in the Middle East as attacks on the world’s largest natural gasfield<\/a> in Pars create even more uncertainty at the pump.<\/p>\n Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has warned the fuel situation could get worse<\/a>, before it gets better.<\/p>\n Brent Crude prices surged to US$109 a barrel on Thursday following the attacks, prompting motorists to fill up before prices got even higher.<\/p>\n Some people were unlucky, arriving at the pump after it had run dry<\/a>.<\/p>\n At an NPD in Christchurch, many were nervous about how much a trip to the service station could soon cost.<\/p>\n “I’m currently studying, so it’s not really helpful. I live 40 minutes out of town and then commuting, and so it’s kind of like a bit of a sting in the butt trying to get through study, and it’s like, let’s add more stress,” one student said.<\/p>\n Another person had been checking prices daily: “I’ve been keeping an eye on it, looking at the apps and just checking each day whether or not today’s the day I should go fuel up.”<\/p>\n While others were more optimistic, and said they had just started to take the bus.<\/p>\n As of Thursday, New Zealand had 41.3 days worth of petrol, 47 days of diesel and 49 days of Jet Fuel.<\/p>\n Luxon assured New Zealanders officials were doing what they could to prepare for a fuel shortage.<\/p>\n “Like all New Zealanders, we hope that the conflict is ending quickly, but hope is not a plan, and so we are preparing for the worst case scenario where the conflict is prolonged,” Luxon said.<\/p>\n \nPrime Minister Christopher Luxon. But energy analyst David Keat did not think New Zealand would run out of fuel for long periods of time, if at all.<\/p>\n Keat said the country should be ok.<\/p>\n “I imagine we might miss a few cargos, but in terms of the physical supply, I can’t see us running out for long periods, if at all.<\/p>\n “The price though is a different thing, because everybody is bidding for these cargos and it’s a seller’s market, so the price could go very high.”<\/p>\n![\"Prime](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/4JRITIO_Image_2_jfif.jpeg\")
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\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Samuel Rillstone\n<\/p>\n