'AFR' online has a lengthy article about the recent shortage of...

'AFR' online has a lengthy article about the recent shortage of AdBlue that's needed by heavy vehicles.

The extract below may be relevant to LAU's road transport operations:

"...But while extra supplies were now being produced, the high level of absenteeism among transport drivers who were either ill or isolating as the omicron wave of COVID-19 escalated had created a new problem to solve.

Mr Henry said the industry was now facing delays in having fresh stocks delivered because of the shortage of truck drivers across the economy.

He said DGL employed about 500 people across its Australian workforce. Absenteeism from COVID-19 was affecting all industries in different ways, with certain pockets more affected than others. He said DGL’s warehousing operations had absenteeism rates running as high as 41 per cent.

Todd Hacking, chief executive of the Heavy Vehicle Industry Association, which oversees about 285 truck suppliers and dealerships, said the peak of the crisis had passed. “We’re not out of the woods yet, but it’s certainly stabilised,” he said.

“The Incitec Pivot deal was the game changer,” Mr Hacking said. It had enabled a rapid injection of new supply, giving other players more time to source extra urea to lift production across the industry. The average demand for AdBlue in Australia each week is about 4 million litres, he said.

Mr Hacking said absenteeism among truck drivers was uneven across the industry, with some pockets running as high as 40 per cent. On average, it was around 10 per cent across the industry..."