Diesel stocks are tight and companies are sharing what they have after a refinery shut-down, bad weather at sea, and problems getting fuel from South Korea.
New Zealand's biggest fuel suppliers confirmed this week they were working together to manage supplies as they waited for national diesel stocks to improve.
Caltex, Shell, BP and Mobil were sure there was enough diesel in their combined inventory of terminals to meet demand before more supply ships arrived.
Greenstone Energy spokesman Jonathan Hill, whose company owns the Shell brand in New Zealand, echoed all companies with his assurance there was no shortage of fuel in the South Island.
Greenstone's diesel supplies were "tight" after high demand in September, a weather-delayed Lyttelton shipment, and a shutdown at Marsden Point refinery.
The company had predicted a "tightening in the fuel supply chain" but plans to commission a 10 million-litre tank in Lyttelton were delayed by the Canterbury earthquake.
The tank will be commissioned and operational early next year to provide a "valuable boost" to diesel storage in the South Island.
The next shipment will arrive in Lyttelton this morning and further imports were being arranged from Singapore, Mr Hill said.
"We're not pleased to be short of diesel but we're taking a number of steps to manage it, get supply to where it's needed and to restore levels within the industry."
Caltex spokeswoman Sharon Buckland said supply was further "tightened" in the wake of delays shipping fuel from South Korea.
Nationally, Caltex's supplies were "a little low" but it expected no problems. A long-standing agreement meant fuel companies were co-ordinating their terminals to even-out access to new diesel.
BP spokesman Neil Green and Mobil spokesman Alan Bailey confirmed supply was tight but that their stocks were "fine".
Mr Bailey said the co-ordination system had been used "reasonably regularly", and to good effect, in the past to minimise the chance of any disruption.
