The corporation said the facility is working at reduced capacity following a major fire last week after a gas leak.
Melbourne — A huge fire at one of Australia’s 2 operational oil refineries was extinguished on Thursday, April 16, after burning overnight, the fire service stated, but worries stayed over viable disruption to petrol supplies.
Firefighters replied late on Wednesday after report of explosions and flames at Viva Energy’s refinery in Geelong, some 70km west of Melbourne, Fire Rescue Victoria stated in a statement.
The fire on the MOGAS, or motor gasoline, unit was brought under control around 13-hours later, the fire service said. No injuries had been reported.
Viva Energy stated that the refinery in Geelong, certainly one of two remaining refineries in Australia, supplies around 50% of the fuel used within the state of Victoria and 10% of Australia’s total fuel needs. The refinery can process as much as a 120,000 barrels of oil per day.
It comes as Australia is already confronting pressure on fuel supplies related to the war within the Middle East.
Energy Minister Chris Bowen instructed public broadcaster ABC on Thursday morning that the main effect emerged to be on petrol production, whilst diesel and jet fuel had been still being manufactured at reduced level as a safety precaution.
“I’m sure petrol manufacturing will persist, but it may be effected for a while obviously,” the minister stated, calling the fire “not great timing.”
Incident Controller Anthony Pearce later told a press conference that the exact reason of the blaze was still being investigated, however confirmed there was a gas leak.
“There was a leak of gas from a mechanical component within the system,” he stated.
“The gas has then appeared to have ignited, however the info of the investigation will come to light in days to come.”
Authorities stated there had been no immediate danger to the general public, even though residents in the area were advised to preserve their windows closed as a precaution. The full extent of the damage and any long-term effect stays unclear.
