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The US and Iran's cat-and-mouse game with maritime mines in the Strait of Hormuz has cast a spotlight on Australia's underinvestment in equipment to protect key shipping lanes and ports from sea-floor munitions.

All but one per cent of Australia's international trade undertakes sea journeys, with the nation's ports handling 1.6 billion tonnes of cargo a year, according to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.

But in recent years, Australia's capacity to protect ships from explosive devices hidden in the water has weakened.

In 2024, the Albanese government shelved Project SEA1905, a tender to modernise Australia's mine countermeasure capabilities, to save money.

The decision left the navy with only two ageing Huon-class minehunters in service from an original fleet of six. The two remaining are likely to be decommissioned in the short term, with no plans announced to replace them.

"Mine warfare is one of the areas which has seen cuts in order to transfer money to other higher priority and sexier projects," senior lecturer in maritime strategy at UNSW Canberra Richard Dunley says, referring to the AUKUS nuclear-powered submarines and frigate shipbuilding projects.

The decision to skimp on countermine measures could be a future own goal for Australia, potentially leading to major supply chain disruptions in the event of conflict, according to defence analysts.

There was a taste of that scenario earlier in 2026 when petrol stations ran dry, airlines grappled with jet fuel shortages and farmers struggled to secure fertiliser as shipping disruptions worsened in the Strait of Hormuz amid war between Iran and the US.

US Central Command in August said the nation's military forces had reached a "major milestone" in clearing the strait's international shipping lanes of sea mines laid months earlier by Iran.