Paul Konstek calls for more information as fears mount truckers could become stranded amid fuel uncertainty

Transport firms are calling on the State Government to provide clear information on fuel availability in the bush — and any potential shortages — amid fears drivers could get stranded hundreds of kilometres from home. Paul Konstek — who runs a “hotshot” delivery business principally to get emergency parts to mine sites — said a lack of central fuel tracking system in the State means his drivers are resorting to Facebook posts and phone calls to local councils for information. His business like many in WA is having to respond and adapt to the snowballing consequences of the US-Iran conflict, that has now dragged into its third week. Getting access to diesel in regional towns is proving difficult for agribusinesses and smaller resources related operators that are not big enough to have their own contracts in place and rely on what’s available at the pump. “We’re out in the middle of nowhere and we’ve at the moment trying to keep an eye on which fuel stations are open which stations are closing, and basically getting any data on that is causing a little anxiety,” Mr Konstek told The West Australian. “There’s no real system, we thought maybe Emergency WA would have been a possibility.” While he said the problem had not yet become “critical” it would become greater if multiple towns in a row on commonly-used routes started to run out of fuel. ”That could cause pretty significant issues for us,” he said. Safety also becomes a factor when travelling through regional WA during summer. “We’re talking about places that are getting to 45 degrees and already have limited accommodation availability.” Freight operator Loadshift reported that some drivers across WA, Queensland and western New South Wales were changing routes, delaying work or turning down jobs from potential customers entirely because they are unable to confirm fuel availability along the way. “There’s a million issues in transport. There always is. But if fuel is one of those it’s huge,” operations manager Simon Manton said. In signs of strain from the fuel pinch, it was revealed on Tuesday that Matsa Resources and contractor Blue Cap Mining had stood down non-essential personnel from the Devon Pit gold mine in the Northern Goldfields in a bid to reduce fuel consumption on site. The listed miner has since asserted that the move has no impact on its production schedule and took to the Australian Securities Exchange to scold the ABC for its coverage. Mata’s executive chairman Paul Poli said the company had also introduced other fuel saving initiatives such as tightening transport to and from the mine and the amount of haul trucks. “There is ways to save fuel for a short period without affecting our volume,” he told The West Australian. “I have had discussions with the Premier’s office yesterday and there is light at the end of the tunnel in the near term, so we’re hopeful that the initiatives from the government will start to flow in.”