Fuel Relief Delivers $20 Tank Savings As Burdekin Prices Bite

The Federal Government has announced a temporary fuel excise cut set to save motorists up to $20 per tank over the next three months, amid a nationwide surge in fuel prices.

The measure is expected to ease cost-of-living pressures in regional areas, including the Burdekin, with Ayr previously reported as one of the worst-affected towns for fuel prices in the state.

Burdekin locals have been shelling out up to $2.60 per litre for petrol, with diesel prices eclipsing the $3.30 mark.

The excise cut, which takes effect from 1 April, will reduce these prices by about 26c per litre.

“I'm glad that's happened, because there are people who simply can't afford it at the moment, but still need it to go to work. It's as simple as that,” said one Burdekin local.

“If the government or whoever can make it cheaper, that's good!”

Robyn Sherwood of Home Hill said that while the cut is a step in the right direction, more must be done.

"I live out of town, so I've stopped going places that I would normally just jump in the car and go to,” Ms Sherwood said.

“[The cut] will help a little bit, but with the price of everything about to go up, [fuel prices] need to go back to where they were.”

Federal Member for Dawson, Andrew Willcox, welcomed the Government’s decision to halve the fuel excise, describing it as a “hard-won victory” for Australian motorists.

“This is a win for common sense,” Mr Willcox said.

Dale Last MP, Member for Burdekin, said action should have been taken sooner.

“The LNP Queensland government has … been consistent in raising concerns on behalf of Queenslanders and, frankly, this is a step that should have and could have been taken weeks ago,” Mr Last said.

“The federal government needs to ensure that the full price reduction is passed on to consumers, especially in regional areas. If that means the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) needs more resources, then those resources must be in place.”

Fuel costs remain a key concern for the Burdekin’s sugar industry, the region’s leading economic driver, as the harvesting season approaches.

CANEGROWERS Burdekin chair Glenn Betteridge said while any relief at the bowser was welcome, the cut would have limited direct benefit to growers, who already claim back diesel excise on-farm.

He said diesel was already pushing towards $4 a litre in some cases, with fuel availability and security a bigger concern ahead of harvest.

“The industry needs around 90 million litres between now and November and currently has less than a tenth of that in storage, making availability and fuel security the critical issues,” he said.

“That’s why CANEGROWERS is calling for a national biofuels mandate and the expansion of a domestic biofuels industry – ethanol, biodiesel and sustainable aviation fuel – because every litre produced here is one less litre we need to import.”

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