It seems ironic now but exactly a month before war erupted in the Gulf, oil industry news website Oilprice.com warned of a looming threat to global energy markets.

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It wasn't bombs and missiles, nor retaliatory strikes on oil infrastructure or the closure of vital shipping lanes.

It was China's rapid electrification of its heavy truck fleet. In 2025, it reported, sales of electric trucks in China had trebled from the year before. Some 230,000 new battery powered trucks had taken to the road, threatening demand for diesel now and LNG in the not-too-distant future as the fuel sources for China's heavy transport.

By 2028, it estimated half China's truck sales would be for electric vehicles, which wasn't good news from the oil industry's perspective. The article warned the rapid take up of battery powered trucks and other electric vehicles would seriously disrupt Chinese and global fuel markets.

In December, the number of electric trucks had already overtaken diesel vehicles in China. LNG-powered vehicles, which China has encouraged in its bid to cut emissions, will soon be in the rearview mirror as well, especially if the current oil shock persists.

It's not just trucks. Electric city buses now account for 100 per cent of sales while inter-city coaches lag behind at just 6 per cent of the market. Still, China's embrace of electrified public transport in urban areas offers considerable insulation from the diesel scarcity that's alarming countries like Australia, which is still dependent on the fossil fuel.

Not that we haven't noticed, at least when it comes to our own cars. Popular Chinese brand BYD has reported a spike in local interest in its EV range since the war began. In February, a month before hostilities erupted, EVs recorded its strongest monthly market share at 11.8 per cent. China also overtook Japan as a source of new vehicle sales.

The promise of improved battery technology which manufactures predict will reduce charging times to five minutes and the harsh reality of relying on oil from a notoriously volatile part of the world is likely to make demand grow even further.

But catch-up is needed. While there was a........

© Canberra Times