A major fire broke out late last Wednesday night at Viva Energy's Geelong oil refinery, with flames reaching approximately 30m high. Following the fire Australian Workers Union Victoria Branch Secretary Ronnie Hayden said that between 50 and 100 workers had been on site when the fire broke out and that the evacuation “went to plan” The blaze erupted after most workers had left the site and no injuries were reported.
“Today was a good day, considering all that happened last night. Knowling that we had such a catastrophic incident last night where not one member or one worker was injured is a day to be thankful for. I’m so proud that we had AWU members in there that were able to put their training to the test and protect our community and their workmates,” Mr Hayden said. “These guys have been highly trained in emergency response and emergency evacuation, and I think that’s the main reason why there were no fatalities.”
It took Fire Rescue Victoria 13 hours to extinguish the blaze, with firefighters indicating equipment failure may have been behind the fire while also cautioning that the plant owner is investigating the matter.
The Viva refinery, which supplies around 15% of Australia's fuel, is temporarily forced to operate at reduced capacity following the damage. The unit damaged by the fire is responsible for gasoline products, with the rest of the facility remaining operational at a lower level. Viva Energy says despite the decrease in production, petrol supplies remain high and they do not expect a large impact on fuel stocks.
The Geelong refinery plant was built more than 70 years ago and was the first post-war oil refinery to begin operations in Australia. It is one of two remaining operational oil refineries in Australia, with the Ampol refinery in Brisbane being the other.
The facility manufactures petrol, diesel, LPG, jet fuel and avgas, refining the products from crude oil. Viva Energy is an energy company that supplies fuels to industry but also to consumers through its national network of Shell, Liberty and OTR services stations. It also manufactures petroleum products including marine fuel oil, low aromatic fuel and plastic feedstock used to create food packaging, medical equipment and polymer banknotes at the Geelong facility.
Watch the AWU’s response HERE: AWU response to Viva fire