Western Australia creates independent fuel stockpile
-Sydney (14 April)
Western Australia’s (WA) state government and fuel supplier Cambridge Gulf have set up a fuel stockpile in Kimberley – an arid region in the north of the state – to support remote communities and businesses.
The Government of Western Australia has ordered four million litres of diesel from overseas that Cambridge Gulf Limited will store at a Kimberley site, it said on 14 April. Cambridge Gulf can store up to 12 million litres of fuel at the facility, the Government added.
WA’s government will also consider additional fuel purchases for the stockpile, it said.
The state-owned stockpile will be reserved for those who need it most, such as remote communities and the agricultural sector, WA Premier Roger Cook said. Seven petrol stations in WA were out of diesel on 13 April, with another 23 out of unleaded petrol, according to Australian Minister for Energy Chris Bowen.
Minister Bowen welcomed initial reports of the stockpile yesterday. “I welcome all states taking positive action [to secure international fuel supplies]. And certainly, where a state takes positive action, they’ll have our full support,” he said.
Just over a month ago, on 13 March, Bowen allowed companies to release fuel from their mandatory stockpiles to support regional and agricultural customers.
Fuel distribution challenges are impacting WA’s rural industries. “While fuel continues to enter Australia, it is not consistently reaching where it is needed, leading to higher costs and supply delays, especially for operations in regional and remote areas,” Australia’s Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (AMEC) said on 1 April.
“Changes in distribution networks have created bottlenecks, meaning fuel is not reaching key industries and communities efficiently,” AMEC added.
Diesel prices in WA’s metropolitan regions have increased over the last month, from an average of A$2.70/litre on 15 March to A$3.16/litre on 14 April. They may remain elevated for an extended period, given ongoing maritime disruptions at the Strait of Hormuz.
By Avinash Govind