Australia has enough fuel reserves to last almost three months, as petrol prices at the bowser drop to near pre-Middle East war levels.
The stock includes 43 days’ worth of petrol, 36 days’ worth of diesel, and 30 days’ worth of jet fuel, with billions of litres more fuel being shipped, Energy Minister Chris Bowen said on Saturday.
“Australia is doing very, very well in the face of the ongoing tension and challenges that every country in the world is facing with fuel supply,” he told reporters.
“All three levels are more than on the 28th of February, when Iran was first bombed.”
More than 90 ships arrived carrying fuel in May, about 10 more than the average monthly arrival of 81.
Another 50 are on their way, with 3.5 billion litres of fuel expected to be delivered over the next four weeks.
That consists of 1.8 billion litres of diesel, 512 million litres of petrol, 468 million litres of jet fuel, and 709 million litres of crude oil.
“We also have the situation now that we can say fuel is secure through June and July, and now well into August as well,” Mr Bowen said.
Average petrol prices across the nation’s largest cities have fallen to near pre-Iran conflict levels in the past week, but they’re set to rise at the end of the month when the federal government’s temporary fuel tax discount ends.
The average price of petrol on Wednesday was $173.30 cents per litre in Sydney, $175.60 in Melbourne and $176.20 in Brisbane, according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
On February 20, about a week before the conflict in the Middle East escalated, the average price per litre was $165.20 in Sydney, $176.10 in Melbourne and $188.80 in Brisbane.
The day before the federal government temporarily cut the fuel excise by half on March 31, the price was $257.40 in Sydney, $259.10 in Melbourne and $258.70 in Brisbane.
Diesel prices have also dropped, but they’re still well above pre-conflict levels.
The average price of diesel per litre on Wednesday was $206.70 in Sydney, $214.50 in Melbourne and $214.20 in Brisbane.
That’s down from $321.80 in Sydney, $324.40 in Melbourne and $322.70 in Brisbane on March 31, but higher than the average prices on February 20 of $174.30 in Sydney, $178.90 in Melbourne and $179.70 in Brisbane.
Mr Bowen confirmed the temporary 50 per cent cut to the federal fuel excise that reduced the tax on petrol and diesel by 26.3 cents per litre would end on June 30 as planned.
“But of course, we’ll continue to monitor the situation, and we’ll always act in the best interests of Australians, based on the evidence before us,” he said.
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