Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The events of the past few weeks have been a reminder to us all that while Australia is an island, we are not removed from the world.

Right now, a war being fought on the other side of the world is having a real impact on Australians here at home.

No country will be immune from the impacts of this conflict. But what governments can and must do is act.

That's exactly what this government has done. Acting decisively and planning for new challenges that might arise.

We have boosted fuel supply by releasing up to 20 per cent of the baseline Minimum Stockholding Obligation for petrol and diesel. Those stocks are now flowing across the country to the areas that need it most.

We've acted to get more fuels into the Australian market by temporarily amending the fuel standards.

We've fixed refinery support to underpin the important role these facilities play in domestic supply.

We've appointed Anthea Harris as Fuel Supply Taskforce Coordinator to support coordination across governments and sectors.

And we are working directly with international suppliers to keep scheduled arrivals on track.

The longer this war goes on, the more severe the impacts will be. This global crisis continues to present new national challenges, which is why we'll continue to take new national actions.

Today we take the next step to ensure Australia remains prepared. Our focus is on acting now to insulate Australians as best we can from what lies ahead.

The fact is that the broader international environment is becoming increasingly volatile.

Cargo is available on the international market—but it's becoming more expensive and riskier to secure commercially.

Oil prices are moving sharply.

The risk premium for purchasing discretionary cargoes is rising. Work to scope deals and secure additional fuel is already underway.

That's why today's bill is so urgent. This bill creates a strategic reserve to secure the supply of strategic materials that are vital for Australia's economy.

These include fuel, critical minerals, and other goods and materials that may be impacted by disruptions to supply chains.

The Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Amendment (Strategic Reserve) Bill 2026 will ensure Australia's preparedness to address supply chain disruption of materials, goods or things.

This includes fuel and other commodities such as fertiliser, experiencing disruption as a result of market volatility and geopolitical events including the current conflict in the Middle East.

Specifically, through this bill, the Albanese government is taking steps to shield Australians from potential future fuel supply chain disruptions.

This bill establishes a new fuel security trading power to acquire additional fuel in the international market for domestic use.

This fuel security support from the government will not be business as usual. It must be additional supplies that are available on the international market.

It will underwrite the purchase of shiploads of fuel to get here to Australia.

Export Finance Australia will have a very flexible suite of measures to work with companies.

It can provide insurance, derivatives, loans and other arrangements to make sure those companies can go and get those cargoes for Australia and for Australians.

These new fuel security powers will put Australia in a strong position, securing fuel supply where it may be cost prohibitive for private suppliers to source on commercial terms, without government support.

Building on Export Finance Australia's expertise as Australia's export credit agency, the bill provides Export Finance Australia (EFA) with the commercial and financial functions necessary to deliver on the strategic reserve's objectives.

The legislation will give EFA a broad financial toolkit to use on the national interest account (NIA) that will go beyond the debt and equity tools it currently has available on the national interest account.

I want to thank and acknowledge Minister Farrell for facilitating the use of Export Finance Australia, who are well suited to the task ahead of them. I've already met with EFA, and I thank them for their work.

On behalf of, and at the direction of the government, the EFA will have the ability to secure supply, sell, and selectively stockpile fuel, critical minerals and other strategic materials.

These powers will help secure Australia's fuel supply, address regional fuel shortages or supply gaps impacting critical services, and position Australia as a trusted and stable partner in high-value, vulnerable supply chains.

As outlined, this bill responds to the immediate challenge of fuel security.

But it will also include measures to strengthen Australia's economic security in the medium to long term.

This bill also gives legislative effect to the government's election commitment to develop and implement a new $1.2 billion critical minerals strategic reserve.

This will cement Australia at the forefront of global efforts to stabilise critical minerals markets and shore up reliable access to critical minerals vital for Australia's economy, national security and our Future Made in Australia ambitions.

At this point, I want to pay tribute to the Minister for Resources for all her work in making this policy a reality, including her deep engagement with nations in our region and the United States. This is a signature achievement, to the great credit of the Minister for Resources.

Australia has some of the largest deposits of critical minerals in the world—minerals vital to renewable energy and defence technology supply chains.

This bill provides Export Finance Australia with the commercial and financial functions necessary to construct complex financial arrangements that deliver on the objectives of the reserve.

These new tools will allow the EFA to construct financial arrangements via:

This bill will ensure that the reserve can help meet critical minerals demand, support offtake, stockpile critical minerals, if needed, and help to provide price certainty.

As the government announced in January, the reserve will initially focus on antimony, gallium, and rare earth elements. The Minister for Resources is more versed in these terms than I am.

The integration of critical minerals into today's strategic reserve builds on the Albanese Labor government's work to secure investment in Australia's critical minerals sector. I want to acknowledge, again, the work of all involved, particularly the Minister for Resources.

This will create more high-paid jobs for Australians and deliver resilient and sustainable critical minerals supply chains.

In addition to safeguarding Australia's economic and national security, the reserve will position us to collaborate even more closely with key international partners to develop integrated, end-to-end critical minerals supply chains.

Further development of Australia's abundant supply of critical minerals will diversify global supply chains and strengthen economic partnerships with other nations.

We look forward to working with the United States, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Europe, Canada and the UK as we implement the critical minerals strategic reserve.

The fact that these new fuel security measures build on the government's existing commitment to create a critical minerals strategic reserve is not insignificant. It reflects the fact that our focus on building Australia's economic resilience and resource security predates this crisis and will continue after it.

Our government is undertaking every practical measure to shield our nation from the worst of this global uncertainty.

While Australia continues to receive sufficient fuel overall, this bill will help position us to manage fuel supply chain disruptions and ensure we have a wider range of tools available to respond to Australian's everyday needs.

Establishing this strategic reserve is in our national interest, now, and in the future.

We will not wait for a crisis to deepen before we act. We will prepare for what may come, and we will act ahead of the curve. What we do today will shield Australians from the challenges of tomorrow.

Debate adjourned.