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Canberra, Australia: Six fuel ships bound for Australia next month have been cancelled or deferred, Energy Minister Chris Bowen said on Sunday.
Six ships from Malaysia, Singapore and South Korea, which had been expected to arrive next month, were cancelled or deferred, among over 80 ships expected from mid-April to mid-May, the minister told Australian Broadcasting Corporation Television.
"The flow of oil to Asian refineries has slowed, and that has downward impacts on us," he said, conceding that there will be "bumps in supply" in Australia amid the Middle East conflict.
But he said some of those have already been replaced by the importers and refiners with other sources, and that governments will "work with the refiners and the importers to manage those and minimize impacts."
Bowen noted fuel supplies within Australia were slightly higher than before the crisis began, with 38 days of petrol and 30 days supply of diesel and jet fuel, ruling out the possibility of invoking fuel rationing laws in the short term, which "is not designed to be invoked lightly."
He urged Australians to minimize their fuel use by working from home.
