WA flags plan for its own fuel reserve

The West Australian government has flagged plans to develop its exclusive strategic fuel supply after the state’s agriculture sector was rocked by diesel shortages stemming from the conflict in the Middle East.

On Sunday, Energy Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson said the Cook Labor government was developing a plan for the future storage of millions of litres of fuel, which would be controlled by the state and available only to West Australians.

Sanderson would not confirm the specific volume the government was considering, but said it would be in the millions of litres and exclusively available to west coast locals and industries in any future energy crisis.

“This would be solely for West Australians and be directed at the discretion of the state government to areas that need it most, for example, agricultural areas at the end of those supply chains, or remote communities who still rely significantly on diesel,” she said.

Australia’s huge grain farming sector, responsible for roughly 40 per cent of Australia’s crop exports, was left exposed in March as diesel supplies dwindled and prices surged before the critical seeding period.

Sanderson said the state government had noticed the independent spot market had failed regional West Australians during the Middle East crisis, with any future state-based fuel reserve designed to address long-term sovereign supply concerns.

“The first point of failure of the supply chain was the independent spot market where a lot of those agricultural operators and smaller mining operators rely on, so this would allow us essentially to release fuel onto that spot market as required,” Sanderson said.

The energy minister revealed that the government had been exploring the possibility of storing emergency fuel supplies at ports, and working with the mining sector on possible long-term storage solutions.

Any emergency state supply would be separate from the existing national stockpile.

“What we have done as a state is move quicker than any other state to establish the architecture we need to understand the supply chain,” Sanderson said.

Extracted in full from:  https://www.afr.com/companies/energy/wa-flags-plan-for-its-own-fuel-reserve-20260412-p5zna6