We have to continue to decarbonise while ensuring we have diesel where we need it
As conflict in the Middle East ripples through global energy markets, Western Australia finds itself navigating a familiar human tension: the fragility of systems we have long taken for granted. Energy Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson has offered cautious reassurance that the state will endure May's demands and perhaps emerge stronger in June, as federal underwriting of fuel imports and the gradual emergence of alternative supply chains begin to steady the situation. The crisis has laid bare not only the state's deep dependence on diesel but also the absence of the kind of transparency and long-term planning that might have softened the blow — a reckoning that governments and industries are now, together, beginning to address.
- Middle East conflict has severed familiar fuel supply routes, leaving Western Australia exposed and scrambling to secure enough diesel and jet fuel to keep industries, transport, and essential services running through the coming weeks.
- The federal government has moved decisively, underwriting 450 million litres of additional fuel nationally and signalling to global markets that Australia will pay — a move the state minister credits as one of the most consequential interventions of the crisis.
- WA has stockpiled 12 million litres of diesel across three regional hubs and assembled a 26-person emergency team — some veterans of the COVID response — to monitor the situation and prepare for escalation under the National Fuel Security Plan.
- Alternative crude oil sources from outside the Middle East are beginning to reach Australian refineries, offering the first real signs that new supply chains are taking shape and that June may bring meaningful relief.
- The crisis has opened a broader conversation about permanent fuel data reporting from suppliers, with major companies signalling willingness to cooperate — pointing toward a more resilient and transparent energy system beyond the emergency.
Western Australia's energy minister, Amber-Jade Sanderson, has offered measured reassurance that the state will have sufficient fuel through May, with growing confidence about June, even as the Middle East conflict continues to unsettle global energy markets. The federal government has played a significant role, securing an additional 450 million litres of fuel nationally — including 100 million litres of jet fuel shared between Perth and Brisbane — by underwriting purchases that commercial importers would otherwise find too risky. Sanderson described this market signal as one of the most important moves in managing the crisis. Encouragingly, crude oil from non-Middle East sources is beginning to reach Australian refineries, suggesting alternative supply chains are slowly taking hold.
The WA government has not waited passively. It has agreed to purchase and stockpile 12 million litres of diesel across Wyndham, Kwinana, and Esperance — reserves that can be released when regional shortages emerge. A 26-person cross-agency team, drawing on experience from the state's COVID response, is monitoring developments and preparing for multiple scenarios, including a potential escalation under the National Fuel Security Plan. Sanderson has been careful to avoid declaring the crisis resolved, acknowledging how rapidly conditions continue to shift.
Beyond the immediate emergency, the minister is considering whether the data-sharing powers she invoked — compelling the state's six fuel suppliers to report detailed supply chain information — should be made permanent. The data has proven essential to the government's response, and Sanderson sees no reason why diesel should be treated differently from electricity and gas, which already carry such reporting obligations. Major suppliers including Viva Energy, Chevron Australia Downstream, and BP have each signalled willingness to cooperate with a long-term framework.
Sanderson, who also holds the decarbonisation portfolio, used the crisis to reflect on a deeper vulnerability: Western Australia's profound reliance on diesel for transport, industry, and essential services. She framed the disruption as a reminder that the state must continue its transition away from fossil fuels — not by eliminating diesel overnight, but by building a more resilient system that can weather future shocks while steadily reducing dependence on the fuels that made this crisis possible.
Western Australia's energy minister says the state will have enough fuel to get through May and is increasingly hopeful about June, even as the Middle East conflict continues to disrupt global energy markets. Amber-Jade Sanderson's cautious optimism comes as the federal government has moved to secure an additional 450 million litres of fuel nationally since the crisis began, including 100 million litres of jet fuel to be split between Perth and Brisbane. The WA government has taken its own step by agreeing to purchase and stockpile 12 million litres of diesel across three locations—Wyndham, Kwinana, and Esperance—that can be released into the market when regional shortages threaten.
The federal intervention has been significant. Through export finance arrangements, the government is essentially underwriting fuel purchases that would otherwise be too risky or unprofitable for importers to make. This signal to global markets that Australia is willing to pay for fuel has been, in Sanderson's assessment, one of the most important moves in managing the global crisis. The strategy appears to be working: fuel suppliers are reporting that crude oil from non-Middle East sources is beginning to flow into refineries destined for Australia, suggesting that alternative supply chains are starting to take shape.
But Sanderson is careful not to declare the crisis over. She acknowledges the situation is changing rapidly and that the government is preparing for multiple scenarios, including the possibility of moving to a higher alert level under the National Fuel Security Plan—a step that could trigger further restrictions on fuel supply if agreed to by national cabinet. To manage this uncertainty, the state has assembled a 26-person team drawn from across the public service, some of whom worked on the state's COVID response, to monitor developments and prepare contingency plans.
Looking beyond the immediate crisis, the WA government is thinking about how to build longer-term fuel security. Sanderson has used emergency powers to compel the state's six fuel suppliers to regularly provide detailed information about their supply chains—volumes, distribution points, frequency of deliveries. That data has proven invaluable in shaping the government's response, and Sanderson is now considering whether such reporting should become permanent, even after the emergency powers expire. The logic is straightforward: the state already requires this kind of transparency from electricity and gas suppliers, so why not diesel, which is critical to Western Australia's industries?
The fuel suppliers appear open to the idea. Viva Energy said it had been providing information to the government voluntarily before emergency powers were activated and would work productively to determine what long-term data sharing might look like. The company expressed a preference for a uniform approach across government levels to ensure consistency and fairness. Chevron Australia Downstream took a similar position, noting it had agreed to share data reported under the federal Fuel Security Act with the WA government to reduce duplication. BP said it would continue complying with any data requests.
Sanderson, who also serves as the state's decarbonisation minister, used the crisis as a moment to reflect on Western Australia's vulnerability. The state's heavy reliance on diesel—for transport, industry, and essential services—has been exposed by the Middle East conflict. She framed the current situation as a reminder that the state must continue moving away from fossil fuels, though she acknowledged that diesel will remain necessary for some time. The challenge ahead is not eliminating diesel overnight but ensuring the state has it where and when it's needed, while building resilience into the system for the future.
Notable Quotes
The actions of the federal government, particularly the export finance arrangements, has been one of the most important interventions in this global crisis because it's signalled to the world that we're willing to pay for fuel, as a nation.— Energy Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson
We would like to see a uniform approach, to ensure consistency, fairness and efficiency across levels of government.— Viva Energy spokesperson
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
When the minister says she has "growing confidence" about June, what's actually changed between now and a month ago?
The suppliers are telling her that crude oil from outside the Middle East is starting to reach refineries that serve Australia. It's not a flood—it's the beginning of a shift. Before, everything was bottlenecked through one region in crisis. Now there are alternative routes.
But that's fragile, isn't it? One supply chain breaking doesn't solve the problem if you're just replacing it with another one.
Absolutely. That's why they're not declaring victory. They're preparing for escalation under the National Fuel Security Plan. They're stockpiling diesel in three locations. They're treating this as a scenario that could get worse, not one that's solved.
The emergency powers forcing suppliers to hand over data—that feels like the real story here. Why does that matter more than the immediate supply numbers?
Because it's the government saying: we don't actually know what we don't know about our own fuel system. Once you see that gap, you can't unsee it. They're trying to make that visibility permanent.
And the suppliers are cooperating? That's surprising.
They are, but with conditions. They want a uniform approach, not ad hoc demands from different government agencies. They're saying: if you're going to ask for this data, ask consistently and fairly.
What does Sanderson mean when she talks about moving away from diesel while acknowledging they'll need it for years?
She's holding two truths at once. The crisis is immediate and real—diesel is essential now. But the long-term answer is decarbonisation. You can't solve the immediate crisis by switching to renewables. You have to secure diesel while you build the alternative future.