Albanese Says 40MM More Liters of Diesel Secured for Queensland

The Australian government has secured an additional 40 million liters of diesel for Queensland state through an agreement between Freedom Fuels and Export Finance Australia (EFA).

The cargo is due to land in Brisbane this month. "This is in addition to 16 separate shipments already secured in partnership with Ampol, BP Australia, IOR and Viva Energy", said an online statement posted by the prime minister's office.

"Combined, this brings the total amount of additional fuel shipments through the Government’s new Fuel and Fertilizer Security Facility to approximately 690 million liters of diesel and approximately 150 million liters of jet fuel across 17 additional shipments", Anthony Albanese's office added.

"EFA has partnered with Ampol, BP Australia, Freedom Fuels, IOR and Viva Energy to make these 17 additional cargoes of diesel and jet fuel possible so far. More shipments are expected under these agreements.

"Under its Strategic Reserve powers, the Albanese Government has also now supported an additional approximately 205,000 tonnes of agricultural grade urea through agreements between EFA, CSBP and Incitec Pivot".

The government is pursuing further negotiations with industry for fuel and fertilizer, according to the statement.

“By underwriting additional fuel purchases, the Albanese Government is helping to keep our road transport and farm machinery moving at a time of supply volatility. This particular purchase of diesel will provide confidence to tourists planning to undertake road trips to regional Queensland", said Trade Minister Don Farrell.

The AUD 7.5-billion ($5.35 billion) Fuel and Fertilizer Security Facility is part of the Australian Fuel Security and Resilience package announced May 6. The broader package, inserted into the federal budget, totals over AUD 10 billion.

The Fuel and Fertilizer Security Facility provides "loans, equity, guarantees, insurance and price support", according to an official statement.

A AUD 3.2-billion portion of the broader package will fund the establishment of a government-owned Australian Fuel Security Reserve of around 1 billion liters of long-term diesel and aviation fuel supply.

Concurrently the Minimum Stockholding Obligation, imposed on refiners and fuel importers, would be raised by 10 days for every fuel type, the government said.

An additional AUD 10 million from the broader package will "support feasibility studies into new or expanded fuel refining capabilities, to be co-funded with state and territory jurisdictions", the government said.

As of May 30 Australia's diesel, gasoline and kerosene supply held under the Minimum Stockholding Obligation amounted to 36 days, 48 days and 30 days respectively, according to the latest online data from the Climate Change, Energy and Environment Department.

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