Commentary from the Visual Media Association Executive General Manager – IR and Governance, Charles Watson
Based on current information fuel rationing is not something we would describe as imminent, but it’s certainly no longer a theoretical risk. The current government position is that national supply remains secure, however the fact that emergency stock settings have been adjusted, and that there are localised shortages in regional areas particularly in relation to diesel, means that businesses should be treating this as a live contingency issue rather than a remote scenario.
For the print and visual media industry, the immediate implications of any rationing or sustained supply disruption would be higher freight costs and delays in delivery. In practical terms, regional service delivery would come under pressure first. Additionally, and depending on the geographic location, there could be increased difficulties for employees who rely on vehicles to attend work.
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Within our industry, businesses that would be most exposed are likely to be those with a regional footprint. That is where regulators are already focussing their attention, particularly in relation to diesel availability. Any industry member with a regional freight dependency, customer delivery obligations is likely to feel the effects earlier than metro operators.
The VMA is treating this as an active operational risk issue for members. The intention is to finalise and release our contingency plan framework shortly, with timing to be guided by how the supply situation and government response evolves over the coming days. Given the pace of developments, it is important that the framework is practical and current when issued. The framework will focus on practical business contingency measures across workforce attendance, freight and supplier engagement, customer communications, fuel priority decision making, and when to trigger related decisions.
Hopefully we will return to BAU soon. However, from a longer-term perspective the current situation may give businesses pause for thought in relation to delivery route optimisation. This issue also reinforces the broader strategic case for sovereign capability in manufacturing and supply.
