Australia tops world diesel import bill with extra $9 billion during Iran conflict, Climate Council report finds
The Climate Council's Crude Awakening scorecard ranks Australia as the world's largest seaborne diesel importer and among the most exposed countries to fuel shocks, with electrified cars and trucks already cutting fuel demand and costs.
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World's biggest diesel tab during six months of fuel chaos
Australia paid the world's largest extra diesel import bill during the Iran conflict, spending around $9 billion more on diesel imports between March and August — more than twice as much as the next highest country — Climate Council analysis shows. The figure was carried in the Council's release, distributed via the National Tribune, alongside its new Crude Awakening energy security scorecard. 123
The Crude Awakening report, published by the Climate Council, describes Australia as among the most exposed countries to fuel shocks. It ranks the nation as the world's largest seaborne importer of diesel fuel and second in the world for diesel use per person, higher than any other major economy. Australia buys around 90 per cent of the diesel it uses from overseas and now consumes two and a half times more diesel than it did in 2000, with its own supply nearly exhausted. 23
The report frames the crisis as the second global energy shock in four years, beginning when the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28. It states that petrol and diesel prices surged almost instantly, with freight and food costs following. 3
The bill so far: pumps, checkouts and government revenue
According to the Climate Council's report, higher fuel prices have cost Australian drivers an extra $5 billion since the conflict began, and by late September the extra cost was adding up to about $300 million a week. Road freight costs rose a record 17.6 per cent in the year to June, and transport costs jumped 9.2 per cent in March alone, pushing up the price of everyday items and inflation. 3
The report also puts a figure on the policy response: temporary fuel relief at the pump cost the government $3.3 billion in forgone revenue, and when that relief ended, fuel prices jumped 14.8 per cent in a single month, leaving consumers no better protected against the next shock. Climate Council CEO Amanda McKenzie said immediate fuel relief helped people who needed it but cost billions in foregone revenue and was short-lived. 23
Climate Councillor and independent economist Nicki Hutley said in the Council's release that relying on imported oil means leaving energy security in someone else's hands, and that global oil shocks contribute to Australian inflation because of that over-reliance on foreign oil. 2
EVs already cutting fuel demand and household costs
The report documents measurable savings from electrified transport during the conflict. Electric and hybrid cars on Australian roads are collectively using about 17.4 million fewer litres of petrol and diesel every week — which the Climate Council calculates is enough to drive from Sydney to Melbourne more than 210,000 times over — and have saved their owners about $1.7 billion in fuel costs since the conflict began. 3
The Council notes the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard has substantially increased EV uptake, but says Australia still lags on public charging, with 41 EVs on the road for every public charger, almost four times the global average. Buses are leading electrified road transport: almost one third of new buses sold in the first half of 2026 were electric, compared with almost 25 per cent of passenger cars. 3
On the grid side, the report gives two wholesale electricity findings: in the September quarter, renewables pushed wholesale power prices down 27 per cent from a year earlier, while its key findings list a record June-quarter renewable share in the main grid with wholesale prices falling 47 per cent from a year earlier, alongside big batteries cutting gas-fired power to its lowest June-quarter level in over 20 years. The report does not reconcile the two figures, which cover different quarters. 3
Trucking and mining flagged as the weakest link
Diesel and freight are identified as Australia's weakest link in the Climate Council's scorecard. The truck fleet runs almost entirely on diesel, and fewer than one in 100 new trucks sold is electric (0.7 per cent), compared with 20 per cent in China, 7 per cent in Germany and almost 3 per cent in the UK. Road freight and mining together burn 65 per cent of Australia's diesel. 3
The report argues there is room to switch: 1384 electric trucks are already on Australian roads, and the first electric trucking run from Sydney to Canberra lowered energy costs by 84 per cent — a figure also cited by New Energy Transport co-founder Daniel Bleakley in the Climate Media Centre's expert release. The Council says this can scale up with government investment in charging along freight routes, fairer weight limits and upfront support. 13
On mining, the report states taxpayers handed the 18 biggest miners $3.4 billion in fuel tax credits last year to keep burning diesel, despite the sector having what the Council describes as enormous profit margins and the technology to go electric. McKenzie called for redirecting that $3.4 billion to build chargers along key freight routes and help get more electric trucks on Australian roads. 23
Industry voices on electrifying freight and fleets
The expert release issued through the Climate Media Centre points to commercial electrification examples. Janus Electric managing director Ben Hutt says the company can convert a diesel truck to electric in under a week, with batteries swap-able in four minutes and charging bays that avoid the need for nationwide charging networks; its converted trucks have travelled more than 750,000 kilometres. These are claims from the company and the release, not independent findings. 1
Zenobē's Australia and New Zealand country director Gareth Ridge is cited in the same release on fleet electrification in practice, including the company's $100 million funding program for Australian truck operators and a Sydney hub supporting Woolworths' electric home delivery fleet. Hiringa Energy CEO Andrew Clennett is planning what the release describes as Australia's first green hydrogen refuelling corridor, starting with three stations between Sydney and Brisbane backed by a NSW Government grant, each initially capable of refuelling more than 100 trucks a day. 1
Climate Councillor and former BP Australasia president Greg Bourne said in the Council's release that fuel shocks have kept coming since the 1970s, this one is not over, and Australia needs a strategy that progressively weans the country off its reliance on fossil fuels to insulate it from geopolitical shocks. 2
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- TALENT ALERT: Australians picking up a $9b tab for over-reliance on imported diesel – electrifying our transport and industry would put us back in the driver's seatRole not assessedSource extract saved
Why these labels?TALENT ALERT: Australians picking up a $9b tab for over-reliance on imported diesel – electrifying our transport and industry would put us back in the driver's seat
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Cited in 4 paragraphs: World's biggest diesel tab during six months of fuel chaos; Trucking and mining flagged as the weakest link; Industry voices on electrifying freight and fleets.
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- Australia Picks Up World's Biggest Diesel Tab: $9bnRole not assessedSource extract saved
Why these labels?Australia Picks Up World's Biggest Diesel Tab: $9bn
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Cited in 6 paragraphs: World's biggest diesel tab during six months of fuel chaos; The bill so far: pumps, checkouts and government revenue; Trucking and mining flagged as the weakest link; Industry voices on electrifying freight and fleets.
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- Crude Awakening: How Australia Ranks on Fuel SecurityRole not assessedSource extract saved
Why these labels?Crude Awakening: How Australia Ranks on Fuel Security
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Cited in 11 paragraphs: World's biggest diesel tab during six months of fuel chaos; The bill so far: pumps, checkouts and government revenue; EVs already cutting fuel demand and household costs; Trucking and mining flagged as the weakest link.
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