Australia's federal government has released fuel reserves and cut excise taxes amid a fuel crisis, leading to rising petrol and diesel prices. Current data on prices, outages, and oil tanker deliveries is now available for consumers.
The federal government has released fuel reserves, cut fuel excise taxes and rolled out a national fuel security plan as Australia battles a fuel crisis.
While we know there have been outages and price increases, it can be difficult to get a full picture of what is happening – this is partly due to the thousands of independent businesses and different governments involved. We have brought together the latest data on prices, outages and oil tanker deliveries.
Looking at the averages for petrol and diesel across Australia, we can see how much prices have risen since the US and Israel’s war on Iran began in late February.
There can be a huge variation in price and availability, even across a relatively small area. Fuel outages aren’t static – stations can run out and regain stock as governments and companies race to fill gaps in supply chains and release more fuel.
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The map below shows the number of fuel outages across Australia, day by day. You can hover over the stations for a macro view, and click through the dates where data is available.
Since we began collecting data on 27 March, you can see a spike in outages in New South Wales and Victoria on 30 and 31 March.
The next chart shows the total number of stations out of at least one kind of fuel on each day. This is an estimate and may be an undercount given the different timescales that each state reports data.
At least six fuel shipments to Australia have already been cancelled or deferred, and experts say there will probably be more delays or cancellations.
The next chart shows the total number of “port calls” – or stops – at Australian ports by tankers with shipments of fuel and crude oil, which is refined to make fuel.
The Australian government has released fuel reserves, cut fuel excise taxes, and implemented a national fuel security plan.
Petrol and diesel prices in Australia have risen significantly since the onset of the US and Israel's war on Iran in late February.
Fuel outages at service stations are influenced by supply chain issues and the varying stock levels of independent businesses and different governments.
The latest data on fuel prices, outages, and oil tanker deliveries can be accessed through the newly released fuel watch tracker.
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The data does not distinguish between imports and exports, but it does show a slight decline in the number of tankers in February and March compared with the last six years.
The same dataset shows a complete collapse in tankers travelling through the strait of Hormuz in the first weeks of March. Before the war, about a fifth of global oil and a third of fertilisers were shipped through the strait.
Early in March the federal government cut the minimum stock levels that fuel companies are required to hold for emergencies. The next chart is a weekly snapshot of fuel reserves compared to the new minimums, and how long this would last at normal consumption rates.
As of the beginning of April, Australia’s fuel reserves – measured in the number of days they would last – had actually increased since prewar levels.
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