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Albanese steps in on fuel supply as Coalition floats Russian sanctions pause
By Paul Sakkal
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will use his weight to push Asian countries to keep supplying oil to Australia as the Coalition opens the door to dropping sanctions on Russian fertiliser to avoid food inflation should the Strait of Hormuz remain blocked.
The government for the first time on Sunday acknowledged the potential benefit of Australians working from home and cutting back on fuel consumption, two days after it played down recommendations from the International Energy Agency (IEA) to drive less and avoid air travel.
Ahead of a contest over the urgency of Labor’s response to the oil shock in parliament, Energy Minister Chris Bowen warned on Sunday about bumpy supply from next month as crude oil from the Middle East is expected to become scarcer. At least six ships destined for Australia had been cancelled due to the conflict in Iran and the Gulf, he said, with about 80 ships expected to arrive.
Senior sources in the government, who declined to be named so they could speak frankly, said Albanese had been phoning counterparts to lobby for steady volumes of supply. He will step up his diplomatic efforts this week, the sources said, as China clamps down on exports and Labor scrambles to prove it is dealing with the fuel shock proactively.
