Australian petrol prices fall for third straight week on government interventions

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SYDNEY – Australian petrol prices fell for a third straight week, as government measures eased some of the pain at the pump triggered by the war in Iran.

The national average petrol price fell about 5 per cent to A$2.129 (S$1.94) a litre in the week to April 19, but was still about 18 per cent higher than at the start of March as the conflict started, according to data from the Australian Institute of Petroleum.

Diesel dropped about 3 per cent to A$3.089 per litre.

Canberra has sought to ease the domestic fuel crisis by sending delegations to key trading partners, underwriting oil shipments, relaxing diesel standards, cutting fuel taxes and tapping reserves.

It is also rolling out an advertising campaign to encourage Australians to reduce car use. 

Despite being a major producer and exporter of energy, Australia sources the vast majority of its refined fuels from overseas and holds among the lowest stockpiles in the developed world, leaving it acutely vulnerable to global supply disruptions.

That exposure has amplified the impact of the US-Israeli war against Iran, which has snarled energy and other commodity supplies from the Persian Gulf, contributing to fuel shortages and rising prices across the world. 

The lower petrol prices come despite a major fire that forced one of Australia’s only two operating oil refineries to cut production last week.

In the near term, Viva Energy Group’s Geelong refinery will produce diesel and jet fuel at about 80 per cent of capacity and petrol at around 60 per cent, the company said on April 20.

The refinery will boost diesel, jet fuel and petrol production to about 90 per cent of capacity over the next few weeks, it added. BLOOMBERG