Australia Fuel Watch
How much fuel is in reserve, what it costs, and what could change next. The numbers and news behind Australia’s fuel security.
Supply continues. Price and shipping risks remain.
Track domestic stock cover alongside arriving cargoes, local outages and international prices. National reserves do not describe availability at every service station.
Reviewed 8 Nov 2026. Source releases have different reporting dates. This is a dated dashboard, not a live trading or station-availability feed.The supply buffer
Stock held under the Minimum Stockholding Obligation (MSO), expressed at normal consumption rates.
≈ 1.37 months · 1,742 ML
≈ 1.13 months · 3,122 ML
≈ 0.97 months · 795 ML
Australian Government Fuel Plan ↗ · DCCEEW weekly stock data ↗ · Bars share a 0–60 day scale. Months = days ÷ 30.
These are stock equivalents, not a forecast run-out date. They include eligible stocks under MSO rules, including some stocks in Australia’s exclusive economic zone and refinery feedstock equivalents. They are not a simple count of finished fuel sitting in onshore tanks.
Scheduled cargoes include crude and refined fuels; they are not guaranteed deliveries. Do not add this total directly to finished-fuel stock cover.
At 30 Oct: 5 crude tankers and 38 refined-product tankers on the water to Australia. The government says it has secured supply to cover Lytton maintenance. In its 19 October update ↗, Ampol expected its cracking unit to restart in mid-November; that timing is a forecast.
Reported across 8,167 sites. A snapshot of local availability, not a measure of national fuel exhaustion. A station can still have other grades available.
Arrivals, refinery share and outages: Fuel Plan statistics ↗. Tankers and outages dated 30 Oct; four-week import outlook shown in that release.
Explore how demand changes stock cover
An illustration holding stock volumes fixed and excluding replenishment. Not a prediction of shortages.
Illustrative cover = reported days ÷ demand multiplier.
Prices & oil
↓ 1.1 c/L over the week
4 Nov 2026 · ACCC daily city average↓ 0.9 c/L over the week
4 Nov 2026 · ACCC daily city averageWTI spot: US$94.05/bbl
5 Nov 2026 close · EIA daily pricesACCC report, 6 Nov ↗ · EIA daily prices ↗ (spot data credited there to Refinitiv). The five-city average covers Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth; it is not a national average.
Compare the capital cities
AUD per litre · 4 Nov 2026 · rounded to cents. Change the bar display to compare fuels.
| City | Petrol | Diesel | Petrol |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney | $2.35 | $2.77 | |
| Melbourne | $2.35 | $2.78 | |
| Brisbane | $2.36 | $2.81 | |
| Adelaide | $2.26 | $2.74 | |
| Perth | $2.32 | $2.69 | |
| Canberra | $2.47 | $2.88 | |
| Hobart | $2.44 | $2.83 | |
| Darwin | $2.43 | $2.84 |
ACCC report, 6 Nov ↗. Bars: $0–$3.20/L. City averages are not the cheapest local offers.
Brent: the wider price shock
Monthly averages · US dollars per barrel · Jan–Oct 2026
Original chart from EIA Brent monthly data ↗. October: US$123.93 (released 4 November 2026). The spot quote above is a separate measure.
View chart values
Jan $66.60 · Feb $70.89 · Mar $103.13 · Apr $117.29 · May $107.14 · Jun $85.40 · Jul $83.76 · Aug $91.08 · Sep $114.16 · Oct $123.93
Australian pump prices also reflect refined-fuel benchmarks, the Australian dollar, tax, transport and retail pricing. Crude alone cannot explain the whole change.
Latest developments
Checked 8 Nov 2026Iran reports two tanker fires in the Strait of Hormuz
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Navy said two tankers struck mines and caught fire. Reuters and the Associated Press attributed the account to Iranian authorities. The vessels and their destinations were unidentified, and neither report established any disruption to Australian fuel deliveries.
Reuters ↗ · Associated Press ↗Tanker manager reports a crew death after Gulf explosion
Velos Tankers said one seafarer died after a 5 November explosion aboard the empty MT Velos Sapphire heading to Bahrain. A missile was suspected; an investigation was pending. The manager reported no other injuries or pollution. This is a shipping-risk report, not evidence of a lost Australian fuel cargo.
Reuters ↗Shipping incidents continue while mediation remains unresolved
Reuters cites UKMTO reports of at least five vessel incidents since 1 November, including a ship struck by two unidentified projectiles on 4 November. Iran separately claimed further tanker damage. Qatari mediation continues, but neither side has announced a breakthrough. Falling oil prices do not establish that shipping routes are safe or that a peace deal is agreed.
Reuters ↗Five-city petrol and diesel averages edge lower
The ACCC’s 4 November observation puts five-city petrol at 232.7 c/L, down 1.1 c/L over the week, and diesel at 275.8 c/L, down 0.9 c/L. City movements vary: Canberra petrol rose while Perth and Hobart diesel increased.
ACCC ↗Lower reserve floor extended to January
Temporary petrol and diesel stockholding relief continues to 31 January 2027, with conditions intended to support domestic and regional supply.
Australian Government ↗A long supply chain.
A narrow shipping route.
Australia’s exposure extends beyond fuel bought directly from the Middle East. Disruption to crude flows can also affect the refineries that supply our petrol, diesel and jet fuel.
Illustrative supply chain, not a map of current vessel positions. Watch confirmed cargo disruptions, refinery outages and official stock releases together.
Read the numbers properly
Does “41 days” mean Australia runs out in 41 days?
No. It expresses eligible stock against normal consumption. Imports and local refining replenish supply. It also says little about uneven distribution, demand spikes or particular locations. Avoid treating stock cover as a countdown.
Why not compare these figures with a 90-day target?
The IEA obligation is 90 days of net imports, combining crude and petroleum products. MSO days use product consumption and different eligible stocks. These measures are not interchangeable. This page does not calculate current IEA compliance.
How current is this dashboard?
Shipping news reviewed 8 November 2026. Stocks: 27 October. Retail prices: 4 November. Tankers and retail outages: 30 October. Spot oil prices: 5 November close. Monthly Brent history: through October (EIA release 4 November). Each metric keeps its observation date; a newer review date does not turn an older observation into live data. Official weekly stock reporting normally follows Tuesday observations with Saturday publication.
What counts as a reserve, and how confident are the figures?
MSO eligibility includes more than finished fuel in onshore tanks. It includes eligible coastal/EEZ stocks, pipelines and some refinery feedstock equivalents. Compliance is assessed by volume at each regulated business. Confidence is high that the figures reproduce the cited releases; they remain subject to revisions and reporting lag. Confidence in future delivery timing or geopolitical outcomes is lower. No proprietary “crisis score” is used.
Sources, image rights and corrections
Statistics are drawn from DCCEEW, the Australian Government Fuel Plan, ACCC and EIA, with original charts. News summaries link to their publishers; publisher photographs are not copied. The historical NASA photograph is credited and used for informational context under NASA’s media guidelines. This independent project is not endorsed by NASA or an Australian government agency.
DCCEEW stock definitions ↗ · Latest stock release ↗ · Latest ACCC reporting ↗ · Suggest a correction
Before you fill up
Check current local prices and the station’s report time. These dashboard averages are a national context tool, not a local price finder.
NSW & ACT FuelCheck ↗ · WA FuelWatch ↗ · MyFuel NT ↗ · Tasmania FuelCheck ↗ · All states: ACCC price-check resources ↗
Keep an eye on Australia’s fuel.
Get Australia Fuel Watch updates from Andrew Allen: the supply numbers, price changes and developments worth following.