Barely two weeks into the Middle East war and husband and wife Gippsland operators Matt and Jess Bertuna were already coming to grips with an uncertain future.
The partners in the four-truck operation, Bertuna Transport, were pulling out all the stops to keep the business viable – much like a growing number of smaller transport companies around Australia.
Matt Bertuna, who specialises in transportation for the building industry, said the speed and scale of the latest fuel increase has caught even seasoned operators off guard.
“We use about $40,000 worth of fuel a month across three trucks,” Bertuna said. “Now that’s blown out to about $65,000. That’s a $25,000 jump straight away – and that’s before you even look at anything else.”
With diesel prices surging by as much as 70 to 80 cents per litre in a matter of days after the war broke out on February 28, Bertuna said the impact was immediate and unforgiving.
“Every fill-up is costing an extra $700 or $750 per truck. We’re filling up twice a week. Across three trucks, that’s like employing two extra staff and getting nothing in return,” he said.
For a smaller operation like Bertuna Transport, which only launched in 2022, that kind of cost blowout leaves little room to move.
Matt Bertuna said the business moved quickly to adjust its pricing, lifting rates to reflect the higher fuel costs – but the response from customers has been swift and blunt.
“Our first five or six quotes just got turned down straight away,” he said. “They all know why we’re doing it, but they just don’t want to pay for it.”
The result has been an immediate slowdown in work, with trucks parked up during what would normally be productive days.
“This week I’ve only worked a couple of days because there just wasn’t the work there,” said company driver Darren Bell, who splits his time in the cab with his own pilot business.
“We’re trying to juggle jobs between the blokes just to keep everyone ticking over.”
Matt Bertuna said the rapid spike in fuel costs has placed enormous strain on the business, forcing tough decisions about which jobs to accept and how to keep drivers working.
“Fuel prices are going up, and we can’t seem to get it out of the customers.”
Many operators are struggling to pass on the fuel levy to the customer. Image: Prime Creative Media
Bertuna Transport has tried to introduce a fuel levy to recover some of the additional costs, but resistance from customers has forced them to absorb a significant portion themselves.
“We’re trying to pass on about 50 per cent and wear the rest, but that just makes it so tight,” Matt Bertuna said. “We’re sitting around a 15 per cent levy now and hoping we can get that over the line.”
How long that can continue remains uncertain.
“That’s the billion-dollar question,” Bertuna admitted. “If something goes wrong – a gearbox, a tyre – there’s pretty much nothing left. That’s where we’re at.”
While some customers are willing to accept fuel levies, others are locked into contracts priced months in
advance, leaving little room to move, said Bertuna.
“It’s not that easy, especially when you’re working with bigger companies that have pre-quoted their jobs for six to 12 months in advance,” he said.
As a result, the business is now being forced to prioritise work that is financially viable and walk away from jobs that would result in losses.
“We’ve got to pick and choose what jobs we do now…it’s not viable to go backwards just to keep them happy,” Bertuna said.
The impact is already flowing through to drivers, with reduced workloads and uncertainty around hours.
“It’s also the drivers that suffer. They’re having days off here and there because we just can’t take on work that doesn’t pay,” he said.
Bertuna said sending trucks out at a loss simply isn’t an option.
“To put kilometres on the truck, pay wages and then do it for a loss is just insane,” he said.
The uncertainty has also forced Bertuna to keep drivers on casual arrangements, rather than offering full-time roles.
“I can’t have them on full-time; it would crush us if everything came to a stop,” he said.
Compounding the issue is growing concern around fuel supply, with shortages already being felt in some regional areas.
“There are plenty of servos that don’t even have diesel,” Bertuna said.
He has instructed drivers to keep tanks topped up at all times, fearing disruptions could leave trucks stranded.
“Even if they only do 100 k’s a day, top up the tanks, just in case there’s a shortage,” he said.
Reports of trucks parked on the roadside waiting for fuel have only added to the anxiety.
“It sounds ridiculous, but there were trucks parked up because there was no diesel,” he said.
The crisis has also stalled plans to invest in bulk fuel storage, with uncertainty around future pricing making it too risky to commit.
“We were going to set up a tank, but I can’t justify buying 20,000 litres at these prices if it drops in a couple of weeks,” he said.
Despite the challenges, Bertuna remains cautiously hopeful his business can weather the storm – but only with careful planning and support from customers.
“If we plan it right, we’ll get through,” he said.
However, he warned that if fuel prices remain elevated for an extended period, the consequences for small operators could be severe.
“If it goes on too long, the trucks will end up getting parked up,” he said.
Bertuna said the situation highlights the need for a united industry approach, with operators in his region holding firm on rates and refusing to undercut each other.
“Everyone needs to be in it together and put the rates up, otherwise everything stops,” he said.
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