A remote outback town with fewer than 50 people is pitching itself as a future fuel powerhouse, with its mayor declaring the region could ease Australia’s fuel crisis.
Eromanga is known as Australia’s town furthest from the ocean and for being hom some of the country’s largest dinosaur fossils.
Now, local leaders say vast oil reserves could see the region dubbed the “Kuwait of Australia”.
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Quilpie Shire Mayor Ben Hall said the area has a long, proven history of oil and gas production but is being held back at a time when Australia faces ongoing fuel supply pressures amid the Middle East conflict.
“There is an incredibly strong argument for increasing production on site at Eromanga for local refining, this would allow us to help ease the current fuel supply pressures,” he told 7NEWS.
“At a time when global fuel markets remain volatile, it makes sense to maximise what we have onshore and close to where it’s needed.”
A welcome sign greets travellers arriving in Eromanga, a tiny outback town in southwest Queensland. Credit: Quilpie Shire CouncilThe vast outback landscape surrounding Eromanga, where oil and gas reserves lie beneath the surface. Credit: Outback QueenslandQuilpie Shire Mayor Ben Hall. Credit: 7NEWS
The region sits on the edge of the Lake Eyre Basin, which spans about 1.2 million square kilometres, and above the Cooper Basin, both known for significant oil and gas reserves.
At the centre of the push is the Eromanga refinery, operating since 1986, producing about 635 barrels a day, or roughly 10.25 megalitres of diesel each year, but currently running below capacity.
Hall said existing infrastructure and proven reserves in the Cooper Basin make it a logical place to increase production.
“For more than 40 years, this region has quietly delivered oil production without environmental incident, a track record that stands up under any level of scrutiny,” he said in a press release.
“Our oil is so pure it is used primarily for underground mining due to its low emission.”
However, current policy settings, including the Regional Planning Interests (Lake Eyre Basin) Amendment Regulation 2024, are limiting further extraction in the region.
“Our region is bound by regulation that currently restricts any further oil being taken from the Cooper Basin,” he said, stressing that unlocking those reserves would also reduce pressure on key freight routes.
“We’re only around 1000km from Brisbane,” Hall said.
“Local production, rather than transporting oil on the Warrego Highway to Eromanga, would also take pressure off road infrastructure which is set to be negatively impacted by increased large freight movements.”
An IOR sign highlights Eromanga’s remote location, marking it as the furthest service station from the sea. Credit: IOREromanga is known for dinosaur discoveries rather than oil production. Credit: Outback QueenslandThe refinery in Eromanga is owned and operated by IOR (Inland Oil Refinery) and has been since 1986. Credit: IOR
The renewed focus comes as oil from the Taroom Trough, Australia’s first new oilfield in half a century, begins to come online.
Located about five hours west of Brisbane, the site is already producing in small quantities, with the first oil now feeding into Australia’s supply.
But Hall said the Taroom Trough currently has only a handful of wells operating, compared to the Cooper Basin, which has hundreds of wells with known capacity.
“We have been called the Kuwait of Australia, and when you consider what we’re sitting on that’s not overstating the oil reserves that can be safely accessed in our region,” he said in the press release.
With demand growing, he is calling for a rethink of both state and federal restrictions, including the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.
“The next logical step is to ensure the Cooper Basin and greater Lake Eyre Basin isn’t constrained from helping Australia at this time of need,” he said.
Hall said discussions are already underway to expand the Eromanga refinery and scale up domestic production.
“We’d love to see it equally well known for being at the centre of the nation’s fuel future,” he said.
Queensland Premier David Crisafulli is backing expanded drilling at the Taroom Trough.
“I want to see a time in this nation when we return to drilling, refining and storing our own fuel,” he said at the site’s unveiling in early April.
While Australia imports most of its fuel from Asia, those refineries rely heavily on crude oil from the Middle East, meaning disruptions there quickly push up costs and tighten supply, driving up prices at the bowser across the country.
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