On April 29, Australian Foreign Minister Huang Yingxian disclosed an important news: China has nodded and agreed to promote cooperation in the field of aviation fuel transportation with relevant Australian companies.
At present, geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East continue to ferment, the global energy supply chain has been severely impacted, and the international energy market has intensified volatility.
British Reuters immediately interpreted that against the background of tight global energy supply, China is expected to moderately relax and adjust the fuel export control policy implemented earlier.
Since the end of February, tensions in the Middle East have directly affected international crude oil shipping routes. The obstruction of waterway passage has driven up oil prices and put global aviation kerosene supply under overall pressure.
Australia’s local oil refining industry has prominent shortcomings and a serious shortage of production capacity. In previous years, more than 30% of aviation fuel relied on Chinese supplies.
At present, Australia’s domestic fuel reserve inventory only maintains 29 days’ supply, which is far from the internationally accepted 90-day safety reserve standard. Aviation operations and civil fuel supply are facing the risk of continuous supply interruption.
In order to prioritize the stable supply of domestic energy, my country began to tighten the pace of fuel exports in March, which also put many energy importing countries in Asia and the Pacific into a tight supply situation.
The aviation fuel transportation cooperation finalized between China and Australia has gone beyond the scope of ordinary commercial trade and is a key positive signal released by China to stabilize the energy structure of the Asia-Pacific.
Market trade data shows that in May, my country plans to export a total of about 500,000 tons of fuel to Australia, New Zealand and other Asia-Pacific economies, including aviation kerosene, automotive gasoline and diesel, with the export scale doubling compared to April.
Although it has not yet returned to the high levels of the same period in previous years, it is enough to effectively alleviate the current fuel shortage in the Asia-Pacific region.
Huang Yingxian commented that this cooperation is a key step in the recovery of bilateral relations.
Australia urgently needs a stable input of Chinese fuel to support the operation of its local aviation and resource industries; and the iron ore and other mineral resources Australia transports to China are also indispensable raw materials for my country’s industrial manufacturing chain. The two sides have complementary energy and resource advantages, and their interests are deeply integrated and mutually beneficial.
China’s policy adjustment this time fully demonstrates the steady layout and responsibility of a major power:
First, adhere to the bottom line of prioritizing domestic demand. Domestic refining capacity is sufficient and inventory reserves are sufficient. On the premise of stabilizing its own energy, it will take into account the reasonable needs of neighboring countries and never blindly liberalize at the expense of domestic security.
The second is to implement precise and controllable regulation, not to lift the ban across the board, give priority to meeting the urgent needs of Asia-Pacific cooperation countries, and firmly grasp the initiative and voice of energy exports.
The third is to promote the continued recovery of China-Australia relations. From economic and trade exchanges to in-depth cooperation in the energy field, the two sides have put aside their differences and cooperated pragmatically, adding important stability to the volatile global economic landscape.
Reuters’ analysis is in line with the real trend. At a time when global energy chaos is rife, China has appropriately optimized its fuel export policy and proactively shouldered the important task of stabilizing the Asia-Pacific energy market.
Looking across Asia, China is one of the few countries with large-scale emergency export capabilities of refined oil products.
The timely liberalization of cooperative exports will not only relieve Australia’s difficulties, but also build a solid barrier for the energy security of the entire Asia-Pacific.
The more turbulent the situation becomes, the more highlighted the value of multilateral cooperation.
China takes pragmatic measures to fulfill its responsibilities as a major country. It does not rely on power games, but adopts a mutually beneficial and win-win attitude to stabilize the overall regional energy situation and protect the smooth operation of the global supply chain at critical moments.
