Robert Cook has been stuck 100km from Bordertown, a remote community near the border of South Australia and Victoria, since 9pm on Tuesday. He is the owner of Helco Group, a heavy haulage and long-distance trucking company, and was driving a shipment from Perth to Melbourne across the Australian Outback for Loadshift when he began suffering delays caused by an ongoing fuel shortage. Cook and several other truck drivers were stuck at a service station for 12 hours while waiting for a fuel delivery.
Data released by NSW and Victorian governments on Wednesday revealed more than 500 service stations had run out of at least one type of fuel, in those two states alone. Energy Minister Chris Bowen on Tuesday had confirmed at least 600 service stations across Australia had run dry. The flow of oil globally has been slowed this month after Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping route, following joint US-Israeli attacks on the country. The United States-Israeli war on Iran and Tehran's retaliatory strikes have upended global financial and energy markets, raising concerns of a global economic crisis or recession.
Since the US-Israeli strikes on Iran began on February 28, Tehran has launched ballistic missiles targeting Israel, US military bases, oil depots, and other infrastructure across the Gulf region. Iranian attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz have dramatically reduced traffic in the channel, through which about 20% of global oil and gas supplies transit. On March 2, QatarEnergy suspended its LNG production after an Iranian drone attack, straining the global LNG market. About 84% of crude oil and 83% of LNG that passed through the Strait of Hormuz in 2024 was bound for Asia, with China, India, Japan, and South Korea accounting for nearly 70% of oil shipments through the strait and about 15% bound for the rest of Asia.
Iranian missiles hit Qatar's Ras Laffan Industrial City, causing significant damage, and Saudi, Kuwaiti, and UAE energy sites have been affected by the conflict. Iran issued a stark warning following an Israeli strike on the South Pars Gas Field, condemning it as a 'grave mistake' and vowing harsher retaliation if further strikes occur. Prices of refined products such as petrol, gas oil, jet kerosene, and fuel oil have seen significant increases and are expected to continue rising if energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz remain largely shut. European gas prices jumped 20%, feeding fears of a prolonged energy crisis, and the International Energy Agency warned that the US-Israeli war on Iran could trigger the worst energy crisis the world has ever seen.
NATO's Secretary General Mark Rutte confirmed ongoing discussions among allies to reopen involvement in the Strait of Hormuz. Britain has deployed military personnel to the US Central Command, with guidance from General Sir Gwyn Jenkins. Sir Keir Starmer and leaders from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Japan condemned Iranian attacks on shipping and called for an immediate end to blockades, mines, and missile strikes. UK Defence Secretary John Healey pledged increased defensive support for Gulf allies.
The Bank of England has held its base rate at 3.75% amid uncertainty from rising energy prices, and CPI inflation is projected to reach 3.5% in 2026, with further rate cuts now unlikely. The FTSE 100 fell nearly 300 points, trading just above 10,000, and gold prices dropped to £3,430.50, defying expectations of a safe-haven surge.
Airlines face possible flight cancellations due to fuel shortages from Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and surging jet fuel costs from $90 to $200 per barrel. Carriers such as Air New Zealand and Scandinavian Airlines System have already cut flights. Easter travel is expected to be disrupted, with bookings shifting to closer destinations such as Portugal, Africa, and the Caribbean, and Ferrari has temporarily suspended deliveries in the Middle East due to the escalating conflict.
In Moscow, critics of the Kremlin are facing increasing pressure, with Leonid Volkov reporting calls from security services urging him to remove social media content. Iran vowed to escalate its attacks on energy infrastructure across the Gulf region, following President Trump's 48-hour ultimatum threatening to obliterate Iran's power infrastructure if Tehran doesn't fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
It remains unclear what specific measures are being taken by the Australian government to address the fuel shortages affecting service stations and truck drivers, or how long the Strait of Hormuz is expected to remain blocked and under what conditions it might reopen. The current status of diplomatic negotiations between the US-Israel coalition and Iran to de-escalate the conflict has not been confirmed, nor has the total number of service stations across Australia that have run out of fuel or the timeline for resupply.