Australian politicians were told to keep their mouths shut about the country’s dwindling fuel supplies, a top defence analyst has claimed.

Concerns over Australia’s fuel security have surged since the US-Israeli strikes on Iran, with fears regional petrol stations could run out of E10 and unleaded within days.

The war effectively closed the ⁠Strait of Hormuz – the gateway for about 20 per cent of global gas and oil shipping – leaving tankers idle for more than a week and forcing producers to halt pumping while storage cleared. 

Saudi Arabia’s national oil company Aramco temporarily halted operations at its Ras Tanura refinery on the coast after it was hit by a drone. 

Energy Minister Chris Bowen attempted to extinguish fears this week amid reports people had started to hoard petrol in jerry cans. 

‘Supply of diesel and petrol continues to arrive in Australia as expected and our backup reserves remain in place,’ he said on Wednesday. 

‘This international crisis is creating uncertainty right around the world. But Australia is well prepared, with our strategic reserve held under our government in Australia, not in Texas like it was under Angus Taylor.’

But former Deputy Chief of the Royal Australian Air Force, John Blackburn, has claimed politicians were dissuaded from talking about Australia’s fuel supply. 

Politicians across government were told to stay silent about concerns that Australia’s fuel reserves were insufficient, according to former Deputy Chief of the Royal Australian Air Force John Blackburn (pictured, motorists fill their cars with fuel in Brisbane)

Concerns have been raised over fuel security after conflict erupted in the Middle East, effectively shutting the ⁠Strait of Hormuz, the chanel for about 20 per cent of global gas and oil shipping (pictured, smoke rises from a Thai carier near the strait)

The retired fighter pilot wrote a report about Australia’s liquid fuel security for the NRMA in 2014, raising concerns about the dependence on overseas oil.

‘We haven’t made any progress. In fact, we’ve gone backwards,’ he told news.com.au.

‘Back then we had seven refiners, we have two now. 25 years ago, 40 per cent of all our fuel came through Australian refineries and now it’s less than 10 per cent.

‘Individuals knew, “Hey, we needed to do something serious about this”, but the leadership of the parties said “It’s not an election issue, keep quiet about it”.’

The Daily Mail has contacted officials from the Labor government and Opposition.

Minister for Industry and Innovation Tim Ayres has doubled down on the Labor government line that national fuel reserves have ‘not fundamentally changed’ since the conflict began.

‘We have 36 days of petrol, so that’s 1.56billion litres of petrol. In jet fuel terms, 29 days or 802million litres of jet fuel,’ he told ABC South Australia.

’32 days of diesel, about 2.97billion litres of diesel are held either onshore or within our exclusive economic zone. Roughly 80 per cent onshore.’

Energy Minister Chris Bowen has said the supply of diesel and petrol continues to arrive in Australia as expected and our backup reserves remain in place

Gretta Barton, owner of Bartranz Petroleum, which specialises in bulk fuel distribution across Queensland and NSW, told the Daily Mail the crisis was not a supply issue but a distribution problem.

It comes as major oil companies have stopped supplying petrol to non-contract fuel distributors, many of which supply agricultural communities.

‘If this continues another week a lot of people will be in a lot of trouble,’ she said. 

‘This has exposed Australia’s vulnerability as far as refined product goes.

‘Even without major oil companies profiteering there’s clearly not enough fuel stored in our country that can be easily accessed.’