IN BRIEF
- More than a quarter of all fuel imported into Australia comes from Singapore.
- Production at Singaporean facilities has been limited because of the Middle East conflict.
Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has ruled out restricting fuel exports to Australia even if supply issues due to the war in the Middle East worsen in the coming months.
Wong and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signed a fresh agreement to continue trading large amounts of fuel and gas between the two countries on Friday, following a visit by Albanese to the Asian city-state.
"We do not plan to restrict exports. We didn't have to do so even in the darkest days of COVID and we will not do so during this energy crisis," Wong said at a joint press conference after the two leaders met.
"I am confident that Australia and Singapore will not just get through the crisis, but we will emerge stronger and more resilient."
What's in the new deal?
The agreement stated the countries would "make maximum efforts to meet each other's energy security needs" at a time when fuel prices have skyrocketed and many service stations face shortages due to the conflict in the Middle East.
More than a quarter of all fuel imported into Australia comes from Singapore, while Australia provides about one-third of the city-state's LNG supply.
Albanese said the agreement would ensure energy security would be protected.
"It's vitally important that we co-ordinate our response to the global fuel crisis and co-operate so that both of our economies are more resilient," he told reporters.
The conflict in the Middle East is a long way from our region, but every nation in our region is being affected by it.Prime Minister Anthony Albanese
"The best way to deal with this global crisis is, indeed, to work together as partners and as neighbours."
Earlier in the day, Albanese toured an oil refinery and a liquefied natural gas terminal on Jurong Island, off Singapore's southwest coast.
The man-made island hosts a thousands-strong workforce and forms the heart of Singapore's petrochemical industry, including its oil and natural gas exports.
But production at the facilities has been limited as most of the oil processed there comes via the Strait of Hormuz.
Both leaders also called for the strait, where one-fifth of the world's oil supply flows through, to reopen.
Singapore is Australia's largest two-way trade partner in Southeast Asia.
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