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by IANS |
Melbourne, April 16 (IANS) Authorities said on Thursday that equipment failure caused a major fire at an Australian oil refinery that is expected to affect the national fuel supply.
The fire broke out at Viva Energy's refinery in the city of Geelong, 65 km southwest of Melbourne, around 11 p.m. local time on Wednesday and was continuing to burn on Thursday morning.
The facility is one of only two operational refineries in Australia and produces about 10 per cent of the national fuel supply.
Michelle Cowling, deputy commissioner of the fire and rescue service in the state of Victoria, told Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) radio that equipment failure in the refinery caused the fire.
"There'll be a thorough investigation into the failure of how this fire started," she said.
Speaking earlier on Thursday, federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen said that the fire would impact petrol production, but that there is "no reason" to believe it will affect the production of diesel or jet fuel.
"I'm sure that petrol production will continue but it may be impacted for some time," he told ABC television.
He said that the fire was "not great timing" amid the oil supply crisis caused by the conflict in the Middle East and that the government would update Australians with the latest information when the full impact of the fire is determined.
The federal government in March struck a deal to continue subsidising the operation of the Geelong refinery, and Australia's other oil refinery in Brisbane, into the 2030s, Xinhua news agency reported.
Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) had said the fire started in the refinery's motor gasoline unit and that flames reached up to 60 metres in height.
It had said that all emergency responders and workers were accounted for and no injuries were reported.
FRV Assistant Chief Fire Officer Michael McGuinness told ABC radio that the fire was being fueled by various types of hydrocarbon fuel and that it was expected to continue burning for several hours on Thursday morning.
"It was burning in an area of approximately 30 metres by 30 metres. There have been several small explosions," he said.
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