Fuel crisis: PM rejects call to cut fuel excise and vows not to repeat COVID-era mistakes

Anthony Albanese has vowed not to repeat COVID-era mistakes as governments work out how to ensure Australians can keep accessing fuel as the Middle East war drags on.

The Prime Minister insists he’s doing everything practical to shield Australians from the worst impacts but he rejected the Opposition’s call to cut the fuel excise to ease the price pressure at the bowser.

Service stations in WA were reporting via Fuel Watch that, as at 9am on Friday, 16 sites were out of diesel – with one saying it wouldn’t have any more until April 10 – and 17 are out of unleaded petrol.

Ten of these service stations had neither diesel nor unleaded petrol.

Mr Albanese is convening national cabinet on Monday to discuss a national approach to dealing with the crisis.

“I want us to have the strongest possible plans so we’re ready ... (and) over prepared for what may come,” he said.

“A global crisis needs a national response, and that is what we are doing.

“The lesson of COVID is don’t go down different roads everywhere, take responsibility.”

The Federal Government isn’t planning regular national updates on service station shortages, with Energy Minister Chris Bowen saying the States collect the data and are responsible for distribution.

The figures are fluid as new stock can arrive at a station partway through the day or, in some cases, an outlet has no diesel, receives a truckload but is out again within hours because of the demand.

Public interest in knowing where there were fuel shortages was understandable, one government source said, but that fluidity meant it wasn’t like COVID case updates which were a set figure, and the best place for information was State-based apps such as WA’s FuelWatch.

The Coalition has called on the Government to halve the fuel excise for three months, slashing 26 cents a litre off the price of petrol, and halving the road user charge imposed on trucks.

Opposition Leader Angus Taylor said the $1.5 billion cost of doing so could be paid for by cutting tax breaks for electric vehicles and subsidies for home batteries and green hydrogen.

“We need affordable fuel in this country. We need secure fuel in this country, and we need it as fast as possible,” he said on Friday.

But Mr Albanese rejected the idea and said now was not the time to be cutting measures that encouraged people to save fuel and money.

Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull said people who opposed renewables but complained about Australia lacking sovereignty and national security were contradicting themselves.

“If we had all of our light passenger vehicle fleet and much of our trucks and semi-trailers and so forth were … EVs, then our requirement for imported fuel would be a lot less,” he said.

“Why do you think China is driving electrification so much? Because it does not want to be dependent on imported fuels.”

Six cancelled fuel shipments to Australia have now been replaced and a further three above usual orders secured for April.

As well, six tankers of aviation fuel will arrive between tomorrow and April 8 from China.

Ampol has so far supplied 47 per cent more diesel into regional WA than usual and Viva is up 8 per cent.

Sales are also up at the Esperance fuel terminal by 41 per cent on forecasts.

“Those figures show me that the demand is very high still, and the supply is also increasing, and has increased,” Mr Bowen said.

“The Government has always acknowledged there are real and unacceptable shortages in regional Australia as the demand has spiked so much, and it’s taken time for that strong domestic supply we have to flow to the regional areas to cater for that increased demand.”