Diesel is critical to Australia. Any supply disruption has immediate and widespread consequences, given Australia imports almost 80% of its liquid fuels. As the energy shocks of the Iran war ripple out, Australia's leaders have scrambled to shore up supplies of fuel—especially diesel and aviation fuel.
Disruptions to fuel supplies have happened before, such as in 2008 and 2022. This disruption won't be the last.
What should policymakers do? One option is to ramp up local production of biofuels made not from crude oil but from natural oils such as canola, animal fats—or algae.
As algae researchers, we believe these humble organisms are worth exploring. Making biodiesel and sustainable aviation fuel from these fast-growing organisms can be done with much less land than other crops. Technological advances mean the fuel could scale up.
Many biofuels come with trade-offs
