Fortnightly ALC Government Relations Update No. 12 | 26 June to 09 July 2026

The Australian Institute of Petroleum’s latest weekly report shows diesel prices remained broadly steady in the week to 5 July 2026. The national average retail diesel price was 185.5 cents per litre, up 0.4 cents on the previous week. While diesel is 28.2 cents per litre lower than a month earlier, it remains slightly higher than the same time last year.

Wholesale diesel averaged 170.1 cents per litre, while Singapore Gasoil 10ppm, the key regional diesel benchmark for Australia, averaged 105.0 cents per litre. This remains well above pre-war levels, with Singapore Gasoil sitting around 79 cents per litre before the conflict. On that comparison, the current benchmark is approximately 26 cents per litre above pre-war levels, indicating that international diesel prices remain elevated despite recent easing.

The report reinforces Australia’s exposure to international fuel markets, particularly Singapore benchmark prices. Movements in Singapore Gasoil generally take one to two weeks to flow through to Australian wholesale prices. Regional diesel prices can remain higher due to freight distance, local competition, and operating costs, which are particularly relevant for freight transport, logistics and supply chain operations.

The Victorian Government has amended the Port of Melbourne Pricing Order under the Port Management Act 1995. The amendment introduces a new process for major Strategic Projects, including the Port Capacity Enhancement Program, which covers infrastructure and related works for the proposed Webb Dock North container terminal. 

The changes allow the Port Licence Holder to apply to the Essential Services Commission for approval of strategic projects with expected capital expenditure of at least $500 million, indexed annually from 1 July 2027.

The Commission must first decide within 30 business days whether a proposed project meets the Strategic Project Threshold. If the threshold is met, the Commission then assesses whether the project satisfies the required principles, including whether the expenditure is efficient and whether the Port Licence Holder has acted prudently.

The Port Licence Holder may submit up to two Strategic Project Applications in any 12-month period. Applications must include supporting information, details of consultation with port users, and evidence that feedback has been considered.

If a project is approved, the Port Licence Holder may include approved capital and operating expenditure in its Aggregate Revenue Requirement and capital base, allowing approved project costs to be recovered through the pricing framework.

The amendment also excludes tariff components linked to Notified PCEP Costs from the usual Tariff Adjustment Limit. This allows certain costs associated with the Port Capacity Enhancement Program to be recovered outside the standard tariff smoothing mechanism.

Interim and final decisions by the Commission must be published. If an application is not accepted, reasons must be provided. The total assessment period is capped at nine months, unless the Port Licence Holder agrees to a longer timeframe.

Zenobē and Woolworths will lease 148 electric trucks in what is being described as Australia’s largest electric truck fleet rollout, supported by the Clean Energy Finance Corporation.

The first vehicles began deliveries in May, with the full rollout due to continue through 2026. The deal is positioned as a shift from trial projects to commercial-scale zero-emission freight, with Woolworths using the trucks to expand its home delivery electrification program.

The announcement points to growing confidence in electric trucks, fleet financing models and charging infrastructure, while reinforcing the role of major freight customers in driving practical decarbonisation across Australia’s freight transport and freight logistics sector.

NSW Opposition Leader Kellie Sloane, Nationals Leader Gurmesh Singh and Shadow Treasurer Scott Farlow held a press conference following the Opposition’s Budget in Reply on 25 June 2026. The focus was the Coalition’s proposed payroll tax changes, infrastructure planning, Western Sydney, AI and data centres, and regional NSW. 

The central announcement was a proposed new payroll tax regime. The Opposition said it would lower the payroll tax rate and raise the threshold, aiming to make NSW the most competitive payroll tax jurisdiction in Australia.

Gurmesh Singh said the proposed changes would remove around 4,000 businesses from payroll tax and reduce payroll tax for another 25,000 businesses across NSW. He said the policy was intended to support investment, employment and regional businesses.

Scott Farlow said NSW’s economy was “flatlining” and pointed to low GSP growth, population growth outpacing economic growth, and rising tax collections under the current government. He described the payroll tax as a tax on jobs and said the Coalition would seek full costings from the Parliamentary Budget Office before the election.

The Opposition said the payroll tax policy would be partly funded through the reintroduction of an efficiency dividend across government. Kellie Sloane said frontline essential services, including nurses, teachers and police, would be excluded.

Business NSW’s Dan Hunter backed the payroll tax proposal, describing payroll tax as a handbrake on the economy. He also supported the Opposition’s commitment to double funding for Business Connect, which provides advice and support to small businesses.

On infrastructure, Sloane said the Coalition would commit to a future Metro in South West Sydney, with the specific route to be decided after the government’s business cases are considered. She also said the Coalition would seek to renew and revive the Western Sydney City Deal, working with the region’s eight councils on future planning.

On AI and data centres, Sloane said the Coalition was developing a policy framework to guide investment, planning and community impacts. She said NSW currently lacked a clear plan for data centres, despite their role in construction growth and future economic activity.

The press conference also covered regional NSW. Sloane said regional and remote NSW should receive a fairer share of infrastructure investment, pointing to housing, roads, energy and economic development as key priorities. Singh said data centres could provide regional jobs and investment, but needed a clearer planning framework.

Farlow said an efficiency dividend would require government departments and agencies to find savings and operate more efficiently. He said the Coalition had no plans to sell Sydney Water or Essential Energy to fund its payroll tax policy.

Mellisa Teede has been appointed Chair of the Kimberley Ports Authority for a two-year term from 1 July 2026, replacing retiring Chair Reece Waldock.

Ms Teede has senior public sector and regional development experience and has served on the KPA Board since July 2025. The Board will also be joined by Taliah Payne, Deputy CEO of Nyamba Buru Yawuru, based in Broome.

KPA manages the ports of Broome, Derby, Wyndham and Yampi Sound, which support trade and economic activity across the Kimberley. The appointment comes as the WA Government continues investment in First Point of Entry infrastructure to support regional growth.

The NSW Minister for Regional Transport and Roads used Question Time to highlight the Government’s investment in regional road and transport infrastructure, including funding in the 2026–27 Budget to reconstruct and reopen the Great Western Highway at Victoria Pass. The Minister said procurement was underway at the time and argued the Government was pursuing a long-term repair rather than setting a public figure before tender completion.

The statement also pointed to several regional investments, including $22.1 million for Waterfall Way, $10.5 million for Summervilles Road and Gordonville Cutting, and $33 million for the Dorrigo Great Walk. The Minister said the Government had also spent $390 million supporting regional councils to repair damaged roads, alongside nearly $1 billion in disaster recovery spending for the third consecutive year.

The broader budget message was that NSW is allocating $14.2 billion over four years to roads and transport, with regional infrastructure receiving 25 per cent of Restart NSW funding. The Minister also referenced funding for the Sydney to Canberra rail line in partnership with the Australian and ACT governments.

Construction is underway on a Midland Line upgrade between Carnamah and Mingenew in WA’s Mid West to improve grain-to-port freight rail capacity. Arc Infrastructure is upgrading around 78 kilometres of track, replacing timber sleepers with about 55,000 concrete and steel sleepers, increasing the tonne-axle load from 16 to 19 tonnes. Once complete, the project is expected to increase the amount of grain carried on a single train by 25 per cent. 

The corridor is important for grain movements to Geraldton Port, with CBH Group using the line to transport around 500,000 tonnes of grain each year. The line has been temporarily closed in consultation with CBH while works are completed, with the project expected to finish by early next year.

The project forms part of the $200 million Agricultural Supply Chain Improvements program, funded by the Australian Government $160 million and the WA Government $40 million. For this Midland Line upgrade, governments are contributing $45 million for design and materials, while Arc Infrastructure is contributing $22 million for construction.

The key message is that the upgrade is intended to lift regional freight rail productivity, reduce grain transport costs, improve supply chain capacity, and support WA growers and regional communities.

The NSW Government has awarded Seymour Whyte the contract to build a new crossing at Mitchells Causeway, allowing the Great Western Highway at Victoria Pass to reopen. Major construction is expected to begin in July, with the road reopening in the second quarter of next year. 

The new crossing will be built as a bridge structure over the existing convict-built causeway, supported by deep piles anchored into stable bedrock. The existing causeway will be stabilised as part of the works. The design also allows for an additional lane in the future, enhancing the route’s long-term resilience and capacity.

The closure has significantly affected families, businesses, freight operators and regional communities across the Blue Mountains and Central West. The NSW Government has announced an additional $20 million business support package, including grants of up to $25,000 for businesses in Mount Victoria, Hartley, Little Hartley and Hartley Vale, and up to $10,000 for eligible businesses in Lithgow, Oberon and Blackheath.

Enhanced public transport services will continue during the closure, including extra rail, coach and bus services. The government is also continuing work on detour route upgrades, with $50 million committed to improve safety and reliability while the highway remains closed.

A $12.2 million berth remediation project is underway at the ports of Esperance and Albany to support growing trade across southern regional Western Australia. Freyssinet has been awarded the contract to deliver works at Berth 1 in Esperance and Berth 3 in Albany, including hydro demolition and concrete replacement. 

The two berths are critical to WA’s grain export task. Grain accounted for 93 per cent of the 6.7 million tonnes of trade handled through the berths last year, including more than 6.2 million tonnes of grain. Volumes are expected to be higher this year.

The works are being delivered over three years and staged across both ports to avoid disruption to port operations and customers. The investment is aimed at maintaining berth condition, protecting export capacity, and supporting the long-term reliability of WA’s agricultural supply chains.

The NSW Government will invest $12 billion in a new long-term passenger train manufacturing pipeline in the Hunter, including a state-owned facility operated by a private manufacturer. The aim is to shift away from buying trains project-by-project from overseas and give local industry enough certainty to invest, train apprentices and rebuild supply chains.

Two sites are under consideration: Teralba and the Broadmeadow Locomotive Depot. The facility is expected to support more than 30 years of train manufacturing, starting with the new Tangara fleet, followed by the Millennium, OSCAR and Waratah fleet replacements.

The project is expected to create up to 780 construction jobs and 550 ongoing jobs across the facility and supply chains. It sits alongside the $447 million Tangara Life Extension program at Cardiff, which will employ 100 qualified workers and 20 apprentices.