While fuel in the regions runs dry, mining companies are hoarding millions of litres of taxpayer subsidised diesel

Today in Parliament, Abigail gave notice of a motion calling out the discrepancy between the mining sector who are hoarding millions of taxpayer subsidised diesel while regional families can't fill up at the petrol station and farmers can't fuel their tractors.

Abigail said:

I give notice that on the next sitting day I will move:

(1) That this House notes that:

There is increasing concern among many in the community, and in particular regional communities, about the price and availability of fuel and in particular diesel,
In the context of an unfolding fuel price and availability crisis, appropriate action must be taken to ensure available fuel reserves are fairly distributed to consumers and industries who need it most, and
Industries hoarding reserves of fuel while other sectors of the economy are struggling for supply are not acting as good corporate citizens or in the state and national interest.

(2) That this House further notes that:

According to the Commonwealth Department of Climate Change Energy Environment and Water ‘Evaluation of non-road diesel engine emissions management – cost-benefit analysis’ report, the mining sector is the main consumer of non-road diesel in Australia,
The mining industry consumes 35% of the diesel used in Australia, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, up by more than 90% since FY2010-11 to 9.6 billion litres in FY2023-24,
The shift towards more diesel-intensive open-cut coalmines, where strip ratios continue increasing, has resulted in increased diesel intensity by 50% since FY2010-11,
the mining sector is responsible for more than 50% of total diesel use in NSW,
The mining industry is the single largest beneficiary of government subsidies for fuels including diesel, receiving $4.5 billion per year from the federal government under the Fuel Tax Credits Scheme,
The NSW EPA Coal Mining Benchmarking Study estimates NSW coal mines consume at a conservative estimate at least 4 million litres of diesel per day,
Australia’s coal miners specifically receive more tax credits than the nation’s entire agriculture, forestry and fishing industries combined. The metal ore mining industry, of which is predominantly iron ore, receives more tax concessions than the entire road transport, postage and warehousing industries combined, and
Mining operations typically operate with fuel storage capacity designed for 23 days of operational requirements, meaning that mining companies in NSW are currently hoarding hundreds of millions of litres of tax-payer subsidised diesel reserves as a private hedge against fuel price volatility while families and communities in the regions can’t access fuel at the petrol station and farmers, without the same access to capital as the mega-profitable mining companies to build up sufficient reserves, are now struggling to fill up their tractors.

(3) That this House calls on:

The Minister for Energy and the Minister for Natural Resources to immediately conduct an audit of all available fuel supplies on NSW mining sites, and
The NSW Government to immediately act to intervene to prevent mining company fuel hoarding at a time of statewide and national fuel supply uncertainty.

25 March 2026

PUBLIC ENERGY FOR PUBLIC GOOD - SIGN THE PETITION!

Electricity is an essential service. But Labor and Liberal governments have sold off NSW’s energy assets and infrastructure, leaving us at the mercy of the private sector for our energy needs. The result has been soaring energy bills, with more and more people being forced into energy poverty.

A privatised energy system will never deliver a cheap and clean energy network - It’s time to take the power back.

As we transition to 100% renewable energy, we must learn from the mistakes of privatisation, ensure our energy assets are kept in public hands, and rein in the actions of private operators.

Communities across NSW have for too long been at the mercy of privatised power network operators who continue to put profit above people, acting recklessly and cutting corners without regard for community expectations.

Recent catastrophic power outages in regional NSW have made headlines for just this - in Broken Hill, the state’s only 100% privatised transmission network operator has failed to deliver a safe and secure energy network, leaving communities in the dark because of mismanagement and neglect in the pursuit of profit.

To build our case for bringing electricity back into public ownership, the Greens are calling for a public parliamentary inquiry into all NSW power network operators, their operation and corporate decision-making practices.

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While fuel in the regions runs dry, mining companies are hoarding millions of litres of taxpayer subsidised diesel

PUBLIC ENERGY FOR PUBLIC GOOD - SIGN THE PETITION!

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