Petrol, diesel and jet fuel stocks dip but levels considered ‘stable’
Monday, 27 April 2026
Petrol, diesel and jet fuel stocks have all dipped in the latest fuel stocks tally, but the Government says there are sufficient stock levels across all types of fuel.
For petrol, there are 51.8 days on hand as of 11.59 on Wednesday April 22 - 36.1 in the country, 11.4 days on ships within New Zealand’s territorial waters, and 4.4 days on ships outside this country’s economic zone (EEZ).That’s down slightly from Wednesday’s levels for petrol, when there was 52.2 days on hand.
For diesel, today’s stocktake shows there are 41.3 days on hand - 21.9 days worth in the country, 13.7 days on ships within New Zealand’s EEZ, and 5.7 on waters outside the EEZ. This level is down slightly from Wednesday’s stocktake when there was 42.3 days on hand.
There are 45.7 days of jet fuel on hand - 24.9 days in the country, 12.5 days on ships in the EEZ, and 8.4 days on ships travelling to New Zealand. Jet fuel has dipped from Wednesday’s levels when there was 47.4 days in stock.
The previous figures have been revised due to amended returns from fuel companies.
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The slight decrease in petrol, diesel and jet fuel stocks since the previous update “is the sort of variation we would expect to see when international shipping is operating as usual”, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment said.
Movements remain within expectations and show normal patterns, the MBIE statement said.
“While the total stock for diesel is down, the stock in the country and within our Exclusive Economic Zone is as high as it has ever been since the Middle East conflict started.”
The Government has also today announced its plans to remove or temporarily relax some current regulations around freight movement if necessary.
The government last month urged businesses, fuel users, freight operators, and the wider public to report any barriers that could stand in the way of the government's response when it laid out its response plan to the rising fuel costs triggered by the conflict in the Middle East in February.
It is now refining some of those tipline submissions with the aim of implementing them quickly, if required.
Options being looked at include allowing some heavy vehicles to carry more per weight per trip; removing some restrictions on the routes that over-dimension vehicles can make and when they can travel; relaxing time and access restrictions for over-dimension vehicles, enabling travel during off-peak time and shorter trips; and bringing some license class weight thresholds for zero emission vehicles into line with similar diesel vehicle.
Minister for Regulation David Seymour said while New Zealand’s fuel supply remained stable and the country was still in Phase 1 of the fuel response plan, the Government didn’t want a repeat of the Covid-19 lockdowns.
“Doing the work to boost fuel efficiency now helps ensure we can stay in Phase 1 for as long as possible, causing the least disruption to Kiwis,” he said in a statement.
The country’s next fuel stocktake is due Wednesday April 29.