'It's all too hard': Fuel shock pushes regional businesses to the brink

Fuel shock expected to be felt for years as businesses urge extended relief Wed 17 Jun 2026 at 5:03am In short: Regional businesses are warning the global fuel crisis could impact consumers and industry for years to come despite a ceasefire in the Middle East. Most industries in regional Australia have been affected by fuel supply problems and some businesses may even need to close up shop. What's next? A decision from the federal government is expected next week on whether to continue halving the fuel excise and some road user charges. Regional businesses say fuel relief measures need to be extended because the damage done from the fuel shock is far from over. Sharon Middleton runs one of those businesses; for the past three decades her family company Whiteline Transport has moved freight from east to west across the Nullarbor Plain. "I'm really very concerned and I'm already seeing businesses just say 'it's all too hard' and packing up and leaving really good family businesses that have been around for decades," she said. When the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury against Iran in late February, world oil prices hit historic highs. The impact was immediate for Sharon Middleton's business as it takes 3,500 litres of diesel to haul freight return from Adelaide to Perth and the price of that fuel doubled overnight. A move by federal government to halve fuel excise for all Australians and suspend road use charges for truckies provided short-term relief, but these measures are due to come to an end on June 30. The reduction — implemented in March for a three-month period — effectively cut prices at the bowser by 26.3 cents per litre. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has yet to commit to extending the fuel excise rebate and a decision is expected next week. Long road ahead for transport and business Defence and national security consultant John Blackburn has been warning the Australian government for more than a decade about the country's vulnerability to oil shock. "My concern right now is that whilst the minister says, 'don't you worry, we've got more fuel stocks than we had before the war,' he's not talking about what the next couple of years look like," he says. "Because if you don't look at these scenarios, they may do something stupid like put the fuel excise back up without understanding the impact on Australian businesses. "Businesses will go out of business, basically." Mr Blackburn says the problems with fuel supply will not come to an end even if a peace deal is signed on Friday in Switzerland between Iran and the United States. "So much of the strategic reserves that countries have been holding under the International Energy Agency have been used," he said. "So, they're going to want to replenish those stocks. "It's going to take a couple of years for governments and industry to start building their stocks back up. "This is a problem of supply which will result in cost issues that are not going to go away, I'd say, certainly in the next 18 months. "You should imagine about two years of real confusion." Fuel shock sparks tourism drought Like clockwork every winter, droves of caravans head north to soak up the sun in outback Queensland. But when the war broke out in Iran and the price of fuel shot up, many travellers cancelled their plans. "It's this time of year where everyone is flooding up to Queensland," according to traveller Doug Timmins. "The end of autumn coming into winter is the best time. "We should be overrun now, but we're not." In April, the federal government launched a multi-million-dollar advertising campaign encouraging Australians to reduce car use, fill up as usual, and offered tips to save fuel. "Simple actions can make our supply go further and save fuel for our truckies, farmers, and essential services," the ad said. But to people in the bush, its advice to pump up tyres and remove roof racks for better aerodynamics was symbolic of a disconnect with the regions. "That voice just about sent me to sleep, that person saying 'nothing to worry about, pump your tyres up'," Mr Blackburn said. "Look, no wonder Pauline Hanson's the preferred PM in the polls at the moment. "Both sides of politics need to get a grip on themselves." In south-west Queensland, Murweh Shire mayor Shaun 'Zoro' Radnedge said the ad's encouragement to look out for those in the bush ended up hurting small towns as cancellations poured into motels and caravan parks. "When that messaging went out, they didn't just slow the economy, they stopped it," he said. Vicki Jones runs bus tours out of the town of Winton, showing off the Channel Country. In the first months of the tourist season, business has been down 50 to 70 per cent on a regular year. "Travellers are not travelling but, also, the cost of everything's gone up," she said. "And when you're doing 250 to 300 kilometres a day for tours and you're not getting the number of people on tours, it makes the bottom line a little bit sketchy." Profits go down as costs go up Dairy farming is a major part of the economy in south-west Victoria and accounts for about a fifth of the nation's milk production. Michael Vogels part-owns and manages a large family dairy farm at Cooriemungle, an area renowned for its productive land and high rainfall. He said when the war broke out his diesel and fertiliser costs "doubled overnight", as other farm expenses rose by varying levels. It meant his operation could no longer turn a profit. While the costs have eased somewhat and his processor Saputo had since upped its milk price to make ends meet, the crisis for him is still a long way from being resolved. "Unfortunately this is one of the things that can happen in farming, these black swan events you're not expecting that can throw a spanner in the works," he said. But Mr Blackburn argues this wasn't an unexpected or "black swan event" because successive governments have been aware of Australia's lack of strategic oil supply and the country's vulnerability to fuel shock. "I wouldn't describe it as a black swan event because we actually predicted this sort of stuff," he says. "So it's not like it's come as a surprise, it's out of [government] wilful blindness." Mr Vogels said in the long-term consumers needed to pay more for milk to help farmers ride the troughs such as drought and trade disruptions. "I'm hoping some cost increases at the supermarket shelves can be passed through to my business at the farm gate and through a higher farm gate milk price," he said. He wants the cuts to the fuel excise and heavy vehicle charge to be extended. Jo Groves is a fertiliser buyer and agronomist at Whitehouse Fertilisers, a business in Naringal East that supplies local dairy farms and has been hard hit by skyrocketing prices. A key fertiliser that has soared in price is urea, which farmers use to stimulate grass growth. It's especially crucial in the colder months so they can avoid paying for extra feed. She has dealt with urea shortages by "shandying it down" with sulphate of ammonia to keep her dairy farmer clients supplied. She worries about the huge cost increases related to buying and freighting fertiliser her business had to pass onto farmers, who are coming off the back of a recent severe drought. "They're having a hard time recovering from last year, let alone trying to cope with this year," Ms Groves said. "We rely on the viability of our clients. "So when they're not making money, we're not making money either." She also wants the government to extend fuel and trucking rebates. "We need diesel to remain at a reasonable price," she said. "At the moment it's lower than what it was, but it's still too high. "But if it gets back to those high prices again, then it's going to be a disaster again for a lot of our clients and our business itself." Small-town shops face enormous challenge Dairy farming has long underpinned the south-west Victorian town of Cobden which has a large milk processing plant on its fringe. Cafe owner Kim Santospirito said the drought and the flow-on economic impact from the war in the Middle East was hurting her business too. "It's gotten a lot quieter. A lot of farmers don't come into town as much and there's a lot less tourists as well," she said. She was considering selling up if the situation did not improve. "I might have to move on I think. I don't know what I should do," she said. "A lot of people meet in here, especially the older men. "They have a catch up on a Saturday morning and during the week as well." One of those older men Frank Ovens, a former dairy farmer, told the ABC about how the crisis in the Middle East was "slowing everything down" in his town. "People, they don't spend the same, they don't come into town so therefore the town tends to die back, shops shut," he said. "People just aren't spending the money because they haven't got it." [Image text:] EAST Waitilin NEST