00:01Well, it doesn't seem to be a noticeable difference as of yet.
00:06Prices are still going up and we are still seeing those localised shortages, particularly
00:12in regional areas.
00:14But it is still early days since those actions have been announced by the government and
00:19the government does acknowledge that it could take some time for the impact of those measures
00:26to flow on.
00:27Now, when it comes to the shortages being seen locally, particularly in regional areas
00:33across the country, the Energy Minister, Chris Bowen, yesterday confirmed that more than
00:40160 service stations in New South Wales and 55 in Queensland are without diesel.
00:47And concerns around fuel supply are really starting to have widespread impacts across
00:54a range of different industries, but particularly freight and transport, tourism, with people
01:00starting to cancel holidays with concerns that they could run, they could be stranded if we
01:06run out of fuel.
01:08And also waste collection, with warnings that services could start to lessen the longer that
01:14this drags on.
01:15Now, the government has regularly said that these localised shortages are being driven
01:22by an uptick in demand as opposed to a supply shortage across the country, but it is taking
01:28actions to try and shore up Australia's supply, particularly given the uncertainty in terms of how long this
01:35conflict in the Middle East could drag on.
01:38One of those measures is temporarily lowering diesel standards.
01:43So this will allow diesel with a slightly lower temperature flashpoint to be used in Australia.
01:49And really what this will do is open up options to source diesel from overseas, but also provide
01:57the refineries in Australia with more flexibility when it comes to making diesel.
02:03The government's also temporarily relaxed fuel quality standards so that fuel can be funnelled
02:09into Australia's market rather than being exported overseas to countries with lower quality standards.
02:15And the government's also appointed a fuel supply coordinator, whose task is to really focus
02:21on making sure the fuel that we do have gets to those regional areas that are experiencing
02:28shortages and need it most.
02:30But the government has been under sustained pressure here, particularly from the opposition,
02:35who has notably drawn a focus on this issue during question time this week.
02:40There are also persistent questions around whether or not we need to start talking about fuel rationing.
02:47Now, Labor frontbencher Jason Clare was asked about this earlier.
02:52He said it was too soon to have those talks and that the government is focusing on the measures
02:57that it's already announced.
03:00They're the sorts of measures that we're taking to make sure that people have got petrol to put in the
03:05tank
03:05and diesel for farm equipment as well as for vehicles in the cities.
03:11But any talk of rationing, I think it's way too soon to be talking about that.
03:15Well, Romy, senior ministers here are in talks with officials in Asia to ensure fuel supply.
03:21Any progress on that?
03:23That's right. No significant updates as of yet, Gemma.
03:29We know that Australia is heavily reliant on getting our fuel from overseas,
03:34particularly from countries such as Malaysia, Singapore and South Korea.
03:38Given that we only have two refineries still operating domestically,
03:43we get more than 80% of our fuel from overseas.
03:47So, we do know that the government is continuing with talks with officials from Asian countries
03:54to ensure that that supply continues to flow.
03:58In recent days, the Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese,
04:01and his Singaporean counterpart have issued a joint statement,
04:04which commits to strengthening the energy supply chain in the region.
04:09But we don't have further details on, you know, how much fuel supply that could guarantee
04:15and how long that supply will continue to flow.
04:20So, still questions going the government's way for any updates when it comes to those discussions.
04:28The government has previously said that fuel shipments are secure until mid-April,
04:34and Trade Minister Don Farrell was earlier asked whether or not we use our significant amount of
04:40coal and gas exports as bargaining chips within these conversations.
04:45Here's what he had to say in response.
04:47We've got a respectful relationship with all of our Asian partners,
04:56and, you know, we have not failed to deliver one kilojoule of gas into, for instance, the Japanese market,
05:05and we won't. We'll continue to supply those markets, but we will be working with them to ensure that,
05:12as best as we can, we deal with this problem that's emanating from the Middle East right now.
05:19Meanwhile, the Federal Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, has issued a warning to business leaders
05:24that the economic impact from this war in the Middle East could potentially be more damaging than the
05:31COVID pandemic and the global financial crisis, but he has assured them that we are well prepared
05:37to deal with this situation, Gemma.
