Australia's supply chain is at risk of collapsing next month as a shortage of a Chinese-made chemical stops diesel trucks from even starting.
Half of Australia's long-haul truck fleet has a diesel engine and without sufficient supplies of the environmental additive urea, essential transport is likely to be grounded.
Diesel SUVs and utes would also be unable to move without the substance used to reduce the amount of pollutant nitric oxidex going into the atmosphere.
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Australia's supply chain is at risk of collapsing next month as a shortage of a Chinese-made chemical stops diesel trucks from even starting. Half of Australia's long-haul truck fleet has a diesel engine and without sufficient supplies of the environmental additive urea, essential transport is likely to be grounded
Australia's top-selling vehicle the Ford Ranger is only available as a diesel.
China's authorities have this year suspended the export of urea phosphate, which is mainly used as a fertiliser, to contain food prices.
Australia only has eight weeks' of supply left but there are fears it could run out well below then, with China providing 80 per cent of supplies in the Asia-Pacific region.
Chemical manufacturer Incitec Pivot was Australia's only urea maker but its Brisbane plant is closing in 2022 and Daily Mail Australia understands urea is no longer produced at Gibson Island as the factory is repurposed.
The situation is so bad the National Road Transport Association is holding crisis talks with Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce on Friday afternoon.
The group's Warren Clark said a urea shortage would have far-reaching implications for the economy.
'Our industry isn't the only one that will be affected, but we will be hit first and hardest,' he said.
Shaws Darwin Transport managing director Allan Thornley, a board member of the National Road Transport Association, said all trucks less than five years' old would be grounded without sufficient urea supplies.
'We've got no transport service, your
