Overview
- Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s government, which announced the move Monday, will cut the fuel excise by 26.3 cents per litre for three months starting Wednesday, with the budget hit estimated at about A$2.55 billion.
- The heavy vehicle road user charge will drop to zero for three months as leaders adopt a four‑stage National Fuel Security Plan that places Australia at stage two, focused on keeping transport and supply chains moving.
- Parliament introduced emergency legislation Monday to let the Commonwealth underwrite private purchases of overseas fuel cargoes so importers can secure extra shipments despite volatile prices.
- States are taking different paths on demand: Victoria and Tasmania will offer free public transport for a limited period to ease pressure on fuel use, while New South Wales has declined to waive fares.
- Officials report roughly 39 days of petrol and 30 days of diesel in stock, yet local outages continue from panic buying and delivery bottlenecks, and price relief may lag until new, lower‑taxed fuel reaches service stations.