Viva Energy said it should be back up to 90 per cent diesel production capacity over the next few weeks after the fire at its Geelong refinery last week.
Although no details were available on the cause of the blaze, an update statement confirmed that the fire which broke out late on Wednesday night was in the refinery’s Alkylation unit, part of the broader Gasoline complex.
Viva said most major processing units are unaffected by the fire. Following the incident, the Geelong refinery expects to be producing diesel and jet fuel at approximately 80 per cent of capacity and petrol at approximately 60 per cent.
The company said it has sufficient fuel stocks to cover this reduced production and expects to maintain normal fuel supply following this incident.
“Over the next few weeks, and subject to plant inspection, the company expects to be in a position to lift production of diesel, jet fuel and petrol to over 90 per cent of capacity,” the statement said.
Viva Energy CEO Scott Wyatt said the company is committed to conducting a full investigation into the cause of the fire.
Swift action from the refinery’s emergency response team, Fire Rescue Victoria and emergency services, contained the fire which was fully extinguished by late Thursday morning. Every person onsite has been safely accounted for.
“I would like to thank all responders and our employees for their extraordinary efforts to contain and extinguish the fire, make the impacted area safe, and stabilise the rest of the refinery over the weekend,” Wyatt said.
“This was a significant event which was confronting for our employees, neighbours, and the broader community. I am relieved that everyone is safe and apologise for any distress this has caused.
“We will support a thorough investigation to understand what has caused this incident and ensure that we learn from this.”
Wyatt said Viva would progressively restore production once it is confident that it is safe to do so, and do not expect any disruptions to fuel availability or price increases for Viva Energy’s customers as a result of this incident.