How one cashed-up Aussie state is looking after itself during the fuel crisis

By AARON BUNCH FOR AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS Published: 15:22, 14 April 2026 | Updated: 15:22, 14 April 2026 Australia's wealthiest state has splashed its cash and bought millions of litres of diesel - and it won't be sharing it. Western Australia has struck a deal to buy and store four-million litres of diesel in the Kimberley region, Premier Roger Cook says. 'This is a crucial step towards shoring up our state's fuel security into the future,' he told reporters on Monday. 'It will be 100 per cent owned by the state (and) that means it can be directed to where it is needed most. 'It will also make WA the first state in the nation to develop its own strategic stockpile.' BP and local independent fuel supplier Cambridge Gulf will import the diesel from overseas, and it is expected to arrive in WA in the coming weeks. It's expected to cost WA taxpayers $10million. 'We are the largest single jurisdiction in the world,' WA Energy Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson said. WA Premier Roger Cook (above) announced his government will spend $10million to create its own diesel stockpile Cook told reporters the fuel stockpile would help in 'shoring up our state's fuel security into the future' 'We have specific needs, which is why we need to have our own stockpile.' The fuel will be used to bolster supplies to industry and remote communities during shortages and won't be made available to the general public or shared with other jurisdictions. The state has enough trucks to distribute the extra fuel, Ms Sanderson said. The WA government is considering buying an additional 12-million litres of diesel and storing it at the same Wyndham facility. It's also looking at buying and storing diesel in other parts of the state. Opposition energy spokesman Steve Thomas said four-million litres sounded like a lot, but was just a quarter of the diesel WA used every day. WA uses about six billion litres of diesel annually, or 16.4-million litres daily, on average, mostly in the transport, mining and agriculture sectors. Curtin University sustainability expert Peter Newman previously described WA's plan to develop a state-based diesel stockpile, independent of national fuel reserves, as 'desperately stupid'. 'It's going to be very expensive and difficult to even access that (extra) diesel and petrol (on the global market),' he said. In comparison, he said it was a 'no-brainer' for Australia to speed up the transition to electrified transport. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.