By Jo Nova
Well, that can’t be good
Details are sketchy, but the Viva refinery in Corio, Geelong Victoria is reportedly on fire in a big way. This is (or was) one of Australia’s last two remaining oil refineries supplying 10% of domestic needs. Reports on X and Reddit claim the fire started with an explosion at about 11pm in Victoria, with “flames 100ft high”. The glow is visible from Melbourne. Others report the fire started in the “gas separator unit”. with some saying they heard, as many as 7 or 8 explosions. The Victorian Fire Dept has issued a watch and act and stay indoors for people in Geelong. As many as 16 fire units are attending a “Building Fire” on Refinery Rd, Corio which (at this time) is not yet under control.
What are the odds? Speculation is rife: “I’m sure it’s just a coincidence” says every second person.
We’re praying the staff are somehow OK, and someone has sent the SAS to guard our other refinery.
Corio Refinery Fire Reddit
But we’ll be fine, right? As our energy Minister Chris Blackout Bowen says: “No war can impede the flow of sun to Australia” (only nighttime and clouds can do that…).
We’re living in a bubble downunder, and it may have just popped. The ships that have been bringing our oil are mostly ones that were already on the water before the war in Iran broke out. No one is 100% sure what happens next. We are cruising barely a few weeks from potential disaster. This is not a loss of 10% in normal times, it’s potentially a loss of 10% on top of a crisis. It may mean some of the ships we are counting on will not be able to unload and get processed anywhere in Australia. The other refinery, Lytton in Queensland, may be booked at full capacity and it’s not clear whether there will still be storage available in Geelong.
Footage of the Corio oil refinery on fire in Geelong, Victoria (Australia).
Substantial flames billowing into the sky.
Corio supplies ~120k barrels per day of fuel and refined products, equivalent to over 10% of Australia’s daily consumption.
Source: Geelong Community FB pic.twitter.com/Dr8wfOCMBJ
— Tarric Brooker aka Avid Commentator 🇦🇺 (@AvidCommentator) April 15, 2026
Australians were frustrated that three overseas newspapers appear to have reported on this before the local press. The Mirror. The Express. The Daily Mail. The ABC have now sent a reporter.
The billion dollar question is whether the refinery was pushing the safety bounds at a facility presumably being run at full speed under immense pressure, or whether this is no accident. With Australia being a star player in the “Miss Unprepared Nation” stakes, there are few better candidates where one little domestic terror incident could bring us to our knees, begging for oil, and an end to the war.
Construction is slowing, petrol stations are running out of fuel and businesses are already talking of shutting down. Flights are being cancelled. Things are so dire, it’s possible we might actually run out of diesel and jet fuel in… three or four weeks. To solve this the Labor government spent $20 million running adverts telling Australians how to improve the fuel economy of their family car. On social media Victorians have been heard saying, Dang, now they’ll have to take the roof rack and the tow ball off the car…
How’s that ban on fracking looking now? Victoria not only banned it permanently but enshrined it in the constitution just in case the voters changed their minds. Who exactly are the politicians serving…?
It’s 4:30am in Victoria and the extent of the damage to the plant is unknown. I’ll have to leave it to commenters and moderators to update the situation below.
Let’s hope the damage is not as bad as it seems.
—
update: by Raquel (9am local).
All refinery staff and emergency workers have been accounted for and there are no reports of injury.
At 5.27am (local time), the Country Fire Authority (CFA) said the threat had reduced and people in surrounding suburbs could resume normal activities. Earlier advice had been for residents to remain indoors with windows closed, and to turn off heating / cooling that would draw air in.
Viva Energy is one of two oil refineries in the country and supplies half of Victoria’s fuel and 10 per cent of the nation’s.
Viva refinery advise there has been no immediate impact on fuel supplies.
Federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen says “It will impact on production, and at this point, petrol rather than diesel and jet fuel”. A state govt spokesperson says it is not impacting production or storage.
—
update: by Raquel (11:30am local)
Viva Energy CEO Scott Wyatt says two production units have been damaged, used for petrol production and some other products. While reducing production broadly at the refinery while the situation is handled, Wyatt is confident overall supplies will not be affected and shortfalls will be covered by imports.
We have a high degree of confidence to the extent that we have any production shortfalls, we have a very strong import program right through the rest of the month and through May that we can then substitute loss production at Geelong and maintain supply to the market
UPDATE: Refinery operations face months of disruptions
Luckily Viva Energy can arrange some extra ships of petrol to cover the losses:
A fire at Viva Energy’s Geelong refinery is expected to disrupt operations for anywhere between three weeks and three months, threatening a hit to earnings and tightening petrol supply at a critical time for the domestic market, Macquarie has estimated.
While Viva Energy has indicated it can offset lost petrol output through imports…
If finding extra ships of petrol so easy, why didn’t they do it a few weeks ago? It would have been handy.
UPDATE: Labor to stop war in Iran
What is our Defence Minister smoking?
Defence Minister Richard Marles has vowed the government would do “all within our power” to turn a temporary two-week ceasefire between the US, Israel and Iran into a permanent peace.
Apparently we will use our fuel deficiency, our diesel subs, our non-existent merchant navy and achieve exactly what? What leverage do we have? We’ll stop sending iron ore and gold to China unless Iran plays nice?
Or possibly Blackout wanting to switch Australia to all EVs.
He hasn’t quite worked out that electricity can be produced RELIABLY using coal, gas or nuclear.
Coal is exported to China etc to pay for EVs imported, gas is exported and nuclear banned.
Poor fella….
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Simpleton politicians like Blackout Bowen shouldn’t be allowed to make engineering decisions.
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First and foremost, above all else, transition away from fossil fuels.
The Minister for Energy and most other Cabinet Ministers are focused on net zero.
And as reported not widely, the recent trade agreement with the EU Government on behalf of EU member countries contains terms and conditions requiring Australia to follow net zero emissions UNIPCC requirements, and another is EU Government dictating on use of Australia’s land.
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If as widely claimed PM Morrison signed an agreement at Glasgow COP September 2021 to implement net zero emissions agenda why now is the EU Government requiring a guarantee in exchange for a trade agreement that Australia will follow net zero agenda?
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“No war can impede the flow of sun to Australia”
Not true. One war can explode a sulphur shadow across Australia causing a significant reduction in sun light for a very long time. The ultimate way to starve a country. Doing the same to the other country only makes the food problem bigger.
Weapons of mass destruction will upscale to the final weapon, the neutron bomb.
Mars is starting to look appealing.
If nothing else you can leave the Bowens behind.
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That would be the “neutron bomb” so reviled by the pinkos back in the 1980s?
It was described by said pinkos as the “ultimate CAPITALIST weapon”.
Why? Because it had a seriously enhanced radiation “precursor” and (relatively) minimal blast.
Basically, it would kill or seriously disable a lot of people, (including the soviet armoured hordes pouring across the Fulda Gap), and leave most of the “infrastructure / real-state” still standing.
Another “Genie” that might be a bit hard to stuff back into the bottle.
Trivia note: “Genie” is a word derived from an arabic word “djin”, variously meaning spirit / devil”. Amusingly enough, In Japanese, the word means the same, as in, “gai-jin” = “foreign devil”.
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The new neutron bomb is not the old style radiation weapon to take out a tank division. It releases masses of free neutrons which breakdown to plasma and anti-matter. A yield of a device about the size of a car battery is 10Mt.
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“No war can impede the flow of sun to Australia”
Maybe.
But ONE volcano (Tambora, Toba, Krakatau and others) can throw enough “stuff” into the upper atmosphere that the result will be (and HAS been) global agricultural collapse and “years without Summers”.
When you are cold and stumbling around in the half-dark, foraging for food, the “beauteous bounties” of Nature take on a different meaning.
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War can stop the flow of building materials from overseas (ie, China) that are used to harvest the flow from the sun.
Blinkered, bamboozled, bumbling, bone-headed Blackout Bowen needs to go, along with any party or politician that believes in Nut Zero
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As discussed at Sky yesterday there are thousands of solar panels now in storage in Australia, some exported to African countries to be burnt.
Recycling is not cost effective despite a Labor former staffer claiming the technology is now available.
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I can see solar panels and batteries developing into a soft plastics style fiasco with warehouses packed with them on the quiet until one burst into flames. Then the faux shock and surprise that such a thing could happen.
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Does day now follow day according to the gospel of Bowen?
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Top Oil Producing Countries (2025/2026 Data)
United States: >13–20 mb/d
Saudi Arabia: ~9.5–12 mb/d
Russia: ~10–11 mb/d
Canada: ~4.9–5.7 mb/d
China: ~4.3–4.9 mb/d
Iraq: ~4.39 mb/d
Brazil: ~4.0 mb/
So the US produces more oil than Saudi and Russia together.
And it’s mostly fracking..
As of 2024, approximately 67% of U.S. crude oil (8.93 million barrels/day) and 91% of U.S. dry natural gas (35 Tcf)
is produced from shale formations using hydraulic fracturing (fracking) and horizontal drilling.
The “shale boom” has driven this, with unconventional production dominating over 90% of new oil and gas
But in Australia, while 25% of gas is from coal seam gas fracking, almost no oil is from fracking. And in Victoria fracking and coal seam gas and nuclear are now banned in the Victorian Constitution. Clever, eh? Nothing can go wrong in Victoria.
The list of people who might caused the fire at the Geelong refinery is long. Greens, Islamists, unions and Victoria Labor and Chris Bowen. But it’s fine. Victoria doesn’t need oil, gas or coal. We have wind and sun which never stop. And as National Energy Minister Chris Bowen tells us, it’s only 135 million kilometers to the sun.
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Remember that about 1980 Brasil had negligible domestic oil and was spearheading the use of ethanol.
Then they drilled deeper where oil wasn’t supposed to be
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And Australia has petrol E10 Ethanol blend at service stations and could produce more, and Biodiesel, and LPG/CNG and fuel from coal, and ……. long list of options
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Re “Victoria doesn’t need oil, gas or coal. We have wind and sun which never stop. ”
See #3 on today’s thread
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Minister Ambrose knocked back a brown coal La Trobe business venture to produce fuel, fertiliser and acid to release fertiliser in rocks and the company has now transferred to New Zealand where it was welcomed by the Government.
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Just for interest, China, Kuwait, Iraq, and Saudi (and others) have fields that produce vast amounts of hydrogen sulphide (H2S, “rotten egg gas”). I’ve seen concentrations above 350,000ppm (35%) by volume. It’s fatal in minutes above 500ppm, with a lot of time-weighted exposure limits for very low ppm ranges (e.g 5-10ppm), as it gets absorbed and accumulates in the body. It also kills your sense of smell at very low ppm, so that doesn’t help!
Drilling the reservoir in these fields is just unpleasant. Everyone on the rig has to wear breathing apparatus, or at least be ready to put in on immediately, scavengers are used in the drilling fluid to reduce the concentration, or, if drilling “under balanced”, i.e without a well full of drilling fluid (can be more complex, but go with it), then the gas is either flared off, or captured and piped to a production facility.
Gas facilities mostly burn it off, with flare stacks having an almost unnatural-looking blue/white flame. You’d think it was a camera problem or AI/CGI if you didn’t know.
Yet… both sour gas and sour oil are still (comparatively) dirt cheap and economic to produce and refine.
Even when on production platforms in Bass Strait, we all had to do practical H2S awareness training, couldn’t have facial hair (well, beards anyway)and had to wear H2S sensors when outside the accommodation block, though the concentration in the production streams are low, and it’s easily scavenged while drilling, and it’s not sour oil or gas.
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Incredibly hygroscopic, hydrogen sulphide turns instantly on contact with water into sulphuric acid and dissolves everything. But it’s rarely mentioned.
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That’d be sulphurous acid TdeF, H2S03, a much less highly ionized compound than your very corrosive sulphuric acid, H2S04.
My experience of these things arose from high school sixty years ago where we studied the sulphide separation scheme of chemical analysis and spent a great deal of our time playing around in fume cupboards, naughty imps stinking out the entire campus.
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And our Prime Minister is travelling urgently around Asia looking for sources of urea from our neighbours. I would have thought Green Canberra generated enough for the whole country.
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Strangely, the PM is flying in an aircraft fueled by Jet A-1, not an electric aircraft or one led by a team of pegasi or flying reindeer.
Funny how the “Net Zero” fantasy doesn’t apply to him.
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Consider the emissions per crew member and passengers aboard, and that the PM instead of covering the three countries in one has split it into three photo opportunities and media events.
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Remember P.K.Pauchari, ex-train driver head of the IPCC. And the totally hypocritcal boast that he flew 360,000km in one year to tell people not to fly because of Global Warming. This is silly enough, egregious enough but was in an internet world utterly unnecessary. Nothing has changed. Including grumpy Greta, world travelling eternally angry person whose childhood was stolen and travelled first class.
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A good choice for a gravy train driver
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Could be that some or all of the 120,000 bpd is now offline, but since the Viva refinery only produced about 10% of Australia’s needs, it shouldn’t make much difference, but just watch and see the fuel prices rise as a result of this ‘accident’.
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No. If this refinery is knocked out, things look much worse. Any ships that were arranged for Viva may not be able to go to Lytton in QLD. They might have to be sent away. Lytton may be booked out to capacity, and storage may be wiped out at Geelong. Impossible to say now.
There could be real hardship coming if the Strait of Hormuz doesn’t open soon. It’s not certain there will be ships still coming in a few weeks time. This is almost the “worst possible timing”…
But thanks for asking a good question. I’ve added more to the post.
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Another twist Jo – Viva refines a large proportion of 100 Low Lead Avgas for piston engined aircraft. Avgas already at $3.50+ a litre – watch the price soar after this…..
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And as AVGAS soars, so does the Safeguard Mechanism CO2 tax. The Federal Government is making a fortune out of this war, enough to balance the budget with the soaring prices of commodities. Oh, what a lovely war for Dr Chalmers. Do you ever get the impression that the objectives of our leaders and the actual needs of Australians are completely different? Socialists/Communists can never get enough of other people’s hard earned cash.
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And yet another twist remember the Lytton refinery produces high sulphur (50ppm)fuel which because of our regulations was all exported…. then with the (non)crisis the guvment allows approx 100m litres to be released onto domestic market per month for 60 days. Noting the lower grade AI comment was:
“However, the current temporary release of 50ppm sulphur fuel in Australia (up from 10ppm but still below the old 150ppm limit) is not expected to cause significant harm over the 60-day period. Authorities and experts note this fuel is similar to what was used in 2024 and will be blended with cleaner fuel, minimizing risk to hybrids and other modern vehicles.”
Guess that original 60 day limited period of release may now have to be extended and their blend minimization strategy may have to be looked at given longer term use. But then you have to have something to blend with…. Mental note don’t by a second hand hybrid that was on the road for the duration of this crisis.
“…combined with water vapour in the engine and exhaust to form sulphuric acid. This acid can:
Corrode engine components over time, including cylinder liners and bearings.
Degrade engine oil, reducing its effectiveness and potentially leading to sludge formation, especially in vehicles with long service intervals.
Damage emissions control systems, such as the catalytic converter, which hybrids rely on during petrol engine operation. While modern hybrids don’t typically use diesel particulate filters (DPFs), their catalytic converters are sensitive to sulphur, which can reduce efficiency and increase emissions.”
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From a truckie delivering fuel from one of the majors last night in Victoria , they have 6 months supply so no supply shortage but they do have one massive constraint .
And that constraint is the government telling them how much they can deliver , I’ll say it again is the price being manipulated by the govt intentionally or by accident because of this .
Watching the news it would appear this fire when contained will affect the aviation industry but only smaller planes and choppers etc not jets if I heard right , petrol refining will only be curtailed in the very short term but no doubt prices will increase .
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Good for people using diesel, if the farmers would only work half paddocks and therefore only have half harvests later.
sarc
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The thing about tankers, is that they are mobile oil storage tanks. We are supposedly pretty wealthy – can’t we just pay a couple a premium above the going rate to hang around ’til ready to offload?
I dunno, I find the whole invocation of the 70’s much like the invocation of the Spanish Flu in Covid times (ummm – but …. antibiotics?) – I figure that with the new smaller producers in the game + increased tech we should be able to weather this one.
As the guide says ‘Don’t panic’
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10% might sound like a little in the scheme of things, but it supplies half of Victoria’s needs. When things are already stretched that 10% can be significant. Especially when trying to cover the logistics delays from the only other refinery.
Plus, per below, the Viva web site says it’s the only manufacturer of a few products.
“The refinery can process up to 120,000 barrels of oil per day, manufacturing petrol, diesel, LPG, jet fuel, avgas….”
“These include being Australia’s only manufacturer of hydrocarbon solvents, marine fuel oil, low aromatic fuel, avgas, bitumen and high-quality plastic feedstock used to create food packaging, medical equipment and polymer banknotes.”
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That’s what I find interesting about the price discount war going on in a nearby town today Raquel , prices have dropped 3 times since this morning and there is a spread of different outlets including an independent.
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I never understand the pricing.
3 years ago when oil was $116, U91 petrol was AU$2.00
U91 was $2.50 a couple of weeks ago and oil was only $103.
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I suppose realistically it would cost more to refine fuel now than it did then , wage increases , govt charges etc , etc so I would give them a bit of leeway but I suspect there’s a lot of gouging going on and with the blessing of the government .
After all this will push people to by EV’s which is what the government want and higher prices won’t hurt the oil companies bottom line for a short term sugar hit .
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Every time petrol/diesel goes up, so does the Govt’s GST take.. they love it!
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It’s possible there’s a lag time between when oil is purchased and when it hits the petrol stations.
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My dad used to work at PRA refinery in Melbourne. He once came home talking about a horrifying repair at work, the gas storage tank had cracked, but there was nowhere to put the gas, so a welder had somehow sealed the crack on a tank full of gas with a huge sheet of fire shooting out through the gap.
If the tank had blown, Melbourne would have had its own Beirut scale blast, a multi kiloton explosion.
Let’s hope everyone is safe and the fire is quickly controlled.
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A leak and eventual explosion of a natural gas tank actually happened in Cleveland, Ohio USA not too far from where I now live (but before I was born).
https://www.clevelandpolicemuseum.org/historical/east-ohio-gas-explosion-october-20-1944-police-response-and-report/
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It’s not as strange as you might think.
I know you are talking about a storage tank but in-service welding of gas pipelines, also a form of pressure vessel, is a “done thing”.
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Here is a just-released video about Australia’s engineered fuel crisis.
Very unusual comments from a “climate scientist”.
Well worth watching.
Liberal Party (fake conservative) take note if you ever want to get elected again, or at least gain a few seats. But One Nation is Australia’s future.
Australia has no reason to be energy poor.
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Fuel Crisis
https://www.minister.industry.gov.au/ministers/taylor/media-releases/australia-strengthens-fuel-security-new-us-arrangement
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Australia’s fanatical commitment to Net Zero, domination of the Left in every aspect of Australian life and infiltration into all institutions public and private must be terminated immediately.
Or simply just give up the idea of living in a modern, viable, independent and (formerly) free country and accept the inevitable status of something like pre-Milei Argentina.
I suspect Australians will choose the latter.
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So it can be done. Resurrecting the current malaise affecting almost every aspect of life in this country. All we need is a Milei, or a Trump, or a One Nation candidate.
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“Australians were frustrated that three overseas newspapers appear to have reported on this before the local press.”
Funny, I get some news from this blog that seems to be absent from the American press.
Particularly anything about Australia.
Although I have seen Crocodile Dundee and Quigley Down Under.
One big one was the Global Engagement Center.
(From Jo’s really stellar post about it.)
Most Americans have never heard of it.
I’m figuring they prefer we not be engaged about certain things.
But I am keeping an eye out for flying saucers and Christian Nationalists.
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Don’t forget thst the Victorian ban on fracking, bizarrely embedded in the state constitution, was a collaborative effort between Liberals and Labor.
The Liberals are just as anti-energy as the commies.
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Fracking is also banned in over 98% of WA, parts of QLD, TAS, parts of SA, 49% of NT and parts of NSW.
Yes, the title “Stupid Country” is well-deserved.
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And where in America is there an actual problem with fracking which produces almost all gas and most oil? Apart from videos about people being able to light their water, some clearly faked.
With methane seeping continually it is impossible to tell in some areas if the source of the methane is natural or fracking, but of course these are the same areas. Gas and oil always seeps in such areas.
In the Middle East seeping oil and gas was a curse and the best land had neither. Just milk and honey. Though I find that unlikely in rocky Jerusalem. But then the river Jordan is not ‘deep and wide’ but a slime covered creek a metre or two wide as it enters the Dead Sea. Biblical hyperbole.
Still people insist fracking is a terrible curse, without any evidence at all not pushed by Greenpeace or the Gonadian.
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Wow TdeF, the Jordan River must have deteriorated since I was there a few decades ago. It was smaller than I had anticipated, but the water was clear and flowing. I filled a small bottle of water for the future baptism of my grandchildren. Probably illegal, but it was very special.
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I have been kayaking in the Jordan River or more correctly the נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, Nahar ha-Yarden, clean and fresh and fast flowing, although by the time it gets to the Dead Sea it’s substantially depleted due to irrigation demands.
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Nahar means outside Israel?
“If a nahar is outside of Israel and a náḥal is inside Israel, is הַיַּרדֵּן ha-yarden, the Jordan River (as we call it in English) a nahar or a náḥal? On one side of it you are in Israel(West bank of the Jordan) and on the other you are outside of Israel.” At least since 1967.
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There is an artificial 8 metres wide stretch for religious tourists from both Jordan and Israel. Most on the Israel(West Bank) side. Lots of people with immersion baptism in a fat wet T Shirt competition. Guards with machine guns at the ready. This site was created as a meander from the historic place where John the Baptist baptised Jesus. After the war the original site ended up a few hundred metres inside Jordan, so a new place was created.
The old baptismal place now in Jordan is has a Russian/Orthodox church and dried up riverbed. All about 9km North of the Dead sea and there is virtually zero water flowing, stagnant. The last 10km of 250km. The Dead Sea has dropped a long way since 2000, about 1.2 metres a year, probably a stolen water problem. So it’s a long walk down from the Jordanian resorts on the Eastern Bank. But at least I had a Chardonnay 400metres below sea level, lower than most submarines can dive. And soon you will be able to cross the Dead Sea in Crocs. I tried.
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All hopelessly off topic. Except for Golda Meir who said about Moses. “He took us forty years into the desert in order to bring us to the one place in the Middle East that has no oil!” Nor for that matter has Jordan, the two most heavily armed countries in the region, with good reason.
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Gosh- that’s terrible. I will keep the picture of the Jordan all those years ago in my head – for comfort.
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The Jordan at the end is not a normal river. Central Australia has rivers like this which turn into dry flat meanders and salt pans. The Diamantina, Coopers Creek and the Giorgina. Ultimately from the emerald green Goyper or canal country in the North flowing into Lake Eyre, merely 15 metres below sea level. The Dead Sea is 420 metres below sea level. Fresh water in the North, the Jordan water is not going anywhere. The whole valley is a cleft in the earth, paraellel but not collinear on a map with the 400 metre deep Great Rift Valley after Sinai and Egypt. These massive folds are the reason the Middle East has trapped so much oil from photoplankton and on topic.
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hydraulic fracturing of shales (i.e. “unconventional”) is what seems to upset people. No one cares (or possibly knows) that Santos and others have been hydraulic fracturing tight sands in the Cooper/Eromanga basins for decades…
The use of fibre-optic cables to “listen” to the perforation shots, initial fracture propagation, and then the actual multi-stage hydraulic fracturing is pretty amazing. The technology is known as Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS), has quite a few practical applications, and it can now be done with relatively cheap fibre, including the NBN, if one really wanted to..!
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They are upset because they are told to be upset. That’s the function of the Green Press. One video faker was caught with a gas pipe. Anyway, there are zero cases of an actual problem, rather than an allegation of a problem. Gases rise all the time. In Colorado the dangerous gas is radon. Because everyone has a basement for safety, storage, piping(non frozen) 12C, you can be exposed to carcinogenic Radon (Alpha emitter) and must have a certificate.
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The CEO and engineer of the SA gas fields Moomba operation explained fracking very simply and that fracturing rocks is what nature does, and it allows the natural gas to move from pockets to more accessible locations.
Without fracking Moomba would no longer be commercially viable.
However not far away is the Coober Pedy District and even more natural gas discovered, but no permit to access
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Similar playbook employed to embed the Vicdanistan Voice and Treaty permanently. Or federally legislating Liebor’s unachievable 42% CO2 reduction aspirations. Does that mean Bumbling Blackout Bowen goes to jail when they miss the target??
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Looks like Elbow has to get back on the Airbus and get the begging bowl out.
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Of course, the fuel will be available.
At a high price. But it won’t concern him, the Government can just print more money…(sarc).
Like most communists, he has never had a proper job so his understanding of business negotiation or the value of things is non-existent. It’s made even worse by the fact that he’s stupid. He will likely sign, without reading or understanding, any piece of paper put in front of him.
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No need to print more money. Government incomes, hidden taxes on everything are soaring.
I imported some expensive car parts for German cars, clearly not ever made in Australia. Import duty 20% or more plus GST and GST on Import duty and shipping. Given we do not even make cars, this is outrageous profiteering. And as shipping prices soar, another hidden source of income for the hordes of tax collectors. And of course as costs soar and taxes soar, inflation runs away and more money flows to Canberra, especially as intended with bracket creep. Especially if all the massive expenditure is illegally kept ‘off budget’ along with all the CO2 taxes.
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Just try selling a house! Govt screws you for money at every turn of the hundreds of pages you have to deal with! They never want the housing crises/investment scene solved.
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We sold a property recently and it didn’t seem that onerous. Certainly better than the buy side with stamp duty.
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Isn’t that double dipping? Charge both parties? What a rort!
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“What a rort!”
Of course it is! We have spent 20years with this property undergoing Govt-induced inflation, bound to halve the value of the dollar over that time! Then when we sell it for double what we paid, they have the gall to come along and want to take a chunk of that non-existent ‘profit’!!
On top of that, they count that house sale money as one years income, when it should be spread over 20years, the time it took us to build that ‘profit’ up! So my income goes from $30k to $150k in one year, instead of adding 1/20th of that.
The whole thing stinks!
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Just announced a $8 billion mining industry tax windfall revenue receipt
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DM
He’s sounding like this?
Bumped from yesterday
FWIW
A description that could be adapted
“‘He Was a Fattish Man With the Paralyzing Stupidity of a Potato’”
https://hotair.com/tree-hugging-sister/2026/04/14/he-was-a-fattish-man-with-the-paralyzing-stupidity-of-a-potato-n3813892
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Then friends in Rostov on Don tell me that Diesel is 60cents US a litre. Nick down to Turkmenistan and it’s 20centsUS a litre. Damn!
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Consider what the price of diesel and petrol in Australia could have been now if the oil and gas industry had not been interfered with by government implementing UN agendas
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Probably still a decent chunk of their income.
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Waste of fuel (not that Elbow minds that if it is for him to look important) but I can predict all those countries he visits will tell him they will send anything not needed for they own use.
Incidentally I am told that the last trip was to get urea supplies for farmers. I am sure that his tiny brain cannot process thoughts about how such urea (from unicorns?) will pass our wharves and be delivered to our farmers (who for some reason don’t farm in downtown Sydney.
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Being facetious, I’d say a one way flight out of the country would not be a waste of fuel. Send the whole cabinet, just to be efficient. I’d say it wouldn’t even have to land anywhere, but that’d be a waste of a good aeroplane, and I don’t actually wish physical harm on them.
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Yes. These dashes to Singapore. Brunei and Malaysia are meant to portray Elbow as heroically defending the homeland.
And Pong had to go with him to Malaysia – it’s her turf, so doubly heroic.
It’s genuinely disgusting.
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So much for “working from home”.
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Elbow and Bowen should embark on a series of pep talks for the farmers, telling them how they’ve got their backs and doing everything possible for them, I hear farmers are desperately short of fertiliser so that should help them no end.
30
I have no respect for those two at all. Its unusual, usually I can just disagree and move one. Those two seem to possess such an unmatched blend of stupidity and smarmy arrogance that I have zero respect for either of them and perceive them to be a damaging influence.
Not a fan, you might say
00
Aussies don’t seem to be able to understand the stupidity of our government’s energy policies and now we have this fire at the Geelong refinery to add to our problems.
Let’s hope everyone is safe and they can put out the fire today. But we must find out what happened and make sure it doesn’t happen again.
Obviously we should have increased security at the Qld refinery and use the Army if it’s required.
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Geelong… not employing any Middle-Easterners are they?
80
If those ships can’t unload in either VIC or QLD they could simply tutu across the Tasman (Sea) and fill up the storage tanks at our one-and-only refinery at Marsden Point – oh wait (reality check) *the shareholders* ie. 4 big oil companies, under the patronage of Jacinda Ardern’s Labour Government, shutdown the refinery in 2022. Dastardly plan or merely coincidence…
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WE let that idiotic female into Aus…NZ should pay OZ compensation for your folly of Breeding ….evil.
201
You are really going to be angry when she lands a juicy govt appointment.
10
Geelong fire…accident…or C.I.A….OR MOSSAD….OR BOTH. OR …our idiotic Politicians…!!!!!
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I assume you’re being facetious about CIA or Mossad. If not, perhaps you can explain the rationale behind that thought. What would be their motive?
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Australia did not sleepwalk into an energy crisis nor is this refinery “problem “ unexpected. It’s all been planned and is being executed perfectly. They are shutting you down, closing you in your own prison. Next is digital ID and Central Bank Digital Currency. Can’t have you plebs trying to escape the upcoming ECDO rotation as those areas are for the elite.
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In fact, I have a friend who is about to permanently leave Australia for another country. He’s sick of the BS.
As if to confirm the very reason he’s leaving, he discovered that he even needed an Export Permit along with giving the Government at least 10 public “service” working days of “Notice of Intention to Export” as well as lots of other BS for his dog. I’m sure his dog will be happy to leave as well.
230
Australians all need to pretend harder that we are undergoing an energy transition and will only need Chinese wind turbines and solar panels to meet all the energy needs in the country.
Australia has all this clapped out hardware from a bygone era of industrialisation. What can we expect from a 72 year old mountain of junk.
I inspected the Altona refinery about a decade before it was eventually shut down. Its maintenance burden was HUGE back then. When assets are near the end of their life, they are run into the ground; essentially starved of capital. The owners of these assets have been told they are not required in a modern Australia and are taxed to ultimate death. So I would be surprised if the Geelong refinery was in really good health. The fact that Shell got out of the refinery in 2014 indicates it was a marginal asset.
I will be surprised if the Geelong refinery will recover from this fire because it appears extensive. I expect it will be under insured by a big margin. It is now poorly located. The fact that Geelong locals have been asked to stay indoors indicates that it is a community threat.
How many petroleum engineers graduated in Australia in 2026? What Australian companies built refineries in the last decade?
Great news if you are a UN globalist stooge like Australia’s three; Sleezy, Blackout and Wrong.
Twenty years ago I inspected PNGs first oil refinery. They considered they had entered the industrial age with that development.
It is pointless replacing this refinery unless it has access to low cost electricity and a friendly investment environment. Use the insurance and environmental bonds to clear the site.
270
I’m sure the Geelong oil refinery site has already been earmarked for some future public works project, like welfare housing for newly imported Labor voters.
220
That is definitely part of the problem. Aging assets that are not being maintained in a regular fashion. But eventually, like any large machinery there comes a time when you have to go out and buy a new model. VIVA has been on the skids for years. It’s amazing its lasted this long. Already owned by VIVA Singapore and it’s been close to closure for a long time. Electricity pricing is just another nail in the potential coffin. It’s simply easier to ship finished refined product from Singapore. At the moment just propped up by Victorian or Federal government support. My other half has done lots of management training for VIVA. She is not complimentary of the staff on site. All unionised with incredibly inefficient work practices. Huge emphasis on OH & S, to the detriment of efficiency, and economics, so it’s a little ironic that this fire actually occurred. But, then again back to the original point. The plant is OLD, stuff happens.
110
A common feature with new ownership is a reset of the union hold over the site. If that did not happen with Viva buying Geelong then that will be an ongoing issue and more reason not to rebuild.
The Unions are trying to get a better grip of the BHP iron ore operations in WA. If that golden goose is cooked then Australia will be much worse shape economically than present.
150
I don’t see why the Chinese would want to continue to buy our iron ore with feral unions in control and China opening up its colonies in Africa and its new iron ore projects in Brazil.
If Australia ever manages to elect a conservative government like One Nation, one of its immediate duties apart from fixing Australian energy poverty is to get the feral unions under control. Even John Howard tried to do this with some temporary success.
Apart from anti-energy policies, the feral unions will help bring down Australia completely, more so than they already have. And the unions are doing whatever they please, unrestrained under Labor, especially in Victoria. It’s government by the unions, for the unions.
160
Absolutely correct. When one looks back at the process of de-industrialisation of this country over the past few decades, it is clear that the impossibility of competing with cheap exports (with cheap labour costs) was responsible for the closure of many industries – such as our car manufacturing industry. Unionism, which may have been protective of workers in past ages, has contributed to the economic problems that we now are faced with.
Everything has its cost.
130
The Labor Party is funded by Unions. Labor governments at both State and Federal embeds union power because it is their income base.
Every mine site I visited in Australia before my retirement in 2012 required me to submit to a breathaliser test every day while at the site. Fail the test and I would have been forbidden from entering the site.
BHP is currently in a tussle with AMWU over booting a union official for failing his test:
https://theaussiecorporate.com/blogs/pickandscrollnews/union-stand-off-tests-bhp-mine-safety-rules
The official is blaming their mouthwash – for sure!!!
This is indicative of the level of responsibility in union hierarchy. The source of eventual Labor leaders.
50
Did you watch Pauline lose the plot again on Chris Kenny SKY last night, he asked a perfectly reasonable question politely about a staffer she hired and then dismissed when his past was revealed, when first discussed by Kenny with her she lost the plot and typically lost for words and told him she “shot” the staffer, and when Kenny queried it she stuttered and replied I meant “fired him”.
That is not leadership reaction, even when faced with questions unpalatable we expect a well reasoned and to the point response. And as for playing victim again, One Nation often attacks their political opponents (from the same side by the way) and every time they reply she puts on an act of how dare they proportions.
Fact is they are only five (5), 4 Senators as at the 2025 election results and 1 House of Representatives elected as a National again in 2025, and he intends to stand for a Senate seat in 2028. That is One Nation objective, the Senate. Kidding voters that One Nation might form government is ridiculous, the numbers show they are too far behind. They must cooperate with the Coalition for our sake.
35
Dennis,
That’s a frequent criticism of Donald Trump too. It’s a criticism that seems to be missing the point. Many people are sick and tired of the polished “leaders” the traditional political parties have been producing. I’m not wild keen on Trump myself, but don’t you find him *far* more sincere than Harris? Or Biden? Likewise, don’t you think many voters would find Pauline Hanson, with all her stumbles, far more trustworthy than the spite-filled Albo, or SloMo before him?
And if you say that Angus Taylor is cut of a different cloth, well maybe he is. So was Tony Abbott. Quite a few voters will remember what the “Liberal” party did to him. IOW, it’s not really about the leaders; it’s dawning on more and more people that the old parties are poisonous.
60
I don’t want to vote for polished pollies, who are experienced liars – Sleezy, Bowen and Wrong. I want honest individuals. I do not mind if they open their mouth without the brain being in gear. It means they are not going to be good liars.
That question has been put to Pauline Hanson numerous times. The fellow in question served his time. And One Nation have never had the party structure they now have to vet staff and candidates. So they are beginning to get their backroom in order. Even to the point of calling out leaks in the Parliament House IT department.
Most Labor pollies come up through the union movement where they learn to lie without a second thought as a means of getting to the top.
If you want a polished liar who can appear to say something without saying anything then you will really like Penny Wrong.
90
” At the moment just propped up by Victorian or Federal government support. ”
Unsurprising! Another dinosaur long past its death date, running at a loss that is made up by the taxpayers and using that money to make the shareholders rich. Govts should not be allowed to subsidise anything at all !!
10
Did you work for Clough Niugini?
00
Victoriastan is unique in the world stupidity stakes for banning fracking in its Constitution making future legislative changes very difficult, but other countries and regions have also banned fracking.
They all have in common Leftist Governments and are generally energy poor.
Australia- various states
France
Republic of Ireland
Bulgaria
Germany
Costa Rica (they also banned petroleum exploration)
Canada – Quebec, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick
USA – New York and Vermont
Spain – Castilla-La Manchs
The United Nations recommends against fracking but has not banned it – yet. Australia fanatically follows UN decrees and recommendations so that I guess is where the Australian bans originate.
And here’s a bizarre one:
131
David:
Did you miss out California?
20
As far as I’m aware, there’s no outright ban of fracking in California, except in certain cities like Beverley Hills.
30
Is this too much …. https://off-guardian.org/2026/04/12/watch-the-multipolar-world-order-is-the-new-world-order/. Maybe the people organising the Iran war need a bit more pressure on the oil industry.
40
Having worked as an engineer in the oil and gas industry for some 30 years on some of the worlds biggest facilities there are some fairly straightforward solutions to this current situation. Unfortunately, completion of these projects would be many months if not years away. For example, building a HELE coal fired power plant (https://www.whitehavencoal.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/HELE_The_affordable_energy_solution.pdf) would take at least 2 years (Australian union involvement permitting) as would facilities for converting our export condensate into usable fuel. David Archibald over at the Wentworth site has outlined this particular solution to our long term fuel supply – https://wentworthreport.com/the-solution-to-our-fuel-crisis/ – definitely worth a read.
Sadly, the ever diminishing IQ of the majority of voting Australians will simply not allow concepts such as security of fuel supply and reliable energy to interfere with their prime concerns of welfare payments and saving the world from the existential carbon pollution crisis. And that’s without the usual blue banded bee / woggle / whale songline dreamtime influence of the usual space cadets. Only when there is no food on the supermarket shelves and jobs are lost does the seriousness of our current predicament hit home.
In any sane world we should expect the rag tag bunch of MP’s in the Australian uniparty to both understand and provide the environment which would allow us to build the necessary infrastructure. Regrettably our MP’s reduce every meaningful issue to a political calculation which panders to the socialist / watermelon votes (green on the outside, red on the inside) becoming so important to electoral survivability in marginal seats – and that is without the increasingly belligerent religion of peace vote being factored in.
So yes, the solutions are staring us in the face if only we had fewer idiots running the place but I don’t hold out much hope. After all it’s sunny outside and we can just chuck another shrimp on the barbie. She’ll be right…
220
“The solution is simple. Install distillation columns to take the diesel, petrol and jet fuel out of the condensate and export the remainder.”
There’s a problem with this, yes you can take kero and diesel straight off the crude distillation column, but diesel needs to be hydrotreated to reduce sulfur to acceptable levels, and petrol doesn’t come from the distillation tower, it is called naphtha and needs further upgrading in a very expensive unit called a reformer which increases the octane rating so it can be used in todays cars.
130
” would take at least 2 years (Australian union involvement permitting) ”
Nah, you get the Chinese to build it as a turn-key factory, they import all the materials and all the labour and live in an on-site camp isolated from the rest of us. No unions, no health and safety, no wages or overtime.. its all taken care of in the final price.
If you built it near Pine Gap they’d probably do it for free!
30
The early assessment is that this was an accident and not a deliberate act, however it would now be very opportunistic for a foreign actor or home grown left wing eco terrorists to take out the remaining refinery in QLD.
This incident should trigger immediate actions to secure the remaining refinery assets and to fast track new refineries, along with local oil production, but we know this wont happen because our current government wants to cease all FF production from these shores and set us up for the mother of all catastrophes where we all basically starve to death in the most horrible end imaginable.
It would seem that surviving our government is the greatest challenge of our lifetimes.
180
I’m sure Blackout Bowen, Albo Sleazy and all the gang are quietly smiling at this.
80
I heard on an early report that it was a gas separator vessel had split and had caught fire.
These units are usually shut down, stripped and inspected for any corrosion or flaws every 3 years.
60
It would seem that surviving our government is the greatest challenge of our lifetimes.
Superb.
150
Jo I have attached a link that you might like to look at, as it involves a gent named Sal Mercogliano who has a brilliant blog called ‘Whats going on with Shipping’ He has a doctorate in maritime history and is a former merchant mariner. I first encountered Sal during the MV Dali disaster in Baltimore – which apparently remains a shambles. Sal uses Marine tracking and shows us what is happening with the large and ultra large tankers. You should follow up with him, as he will help you immensely with this oil crisis.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGQVhnP0POE&t=20s.
And as aside, I have a reliable acquaintance with a bloke who ventured up to northern South Oz past Innaminka 4 years ago and was amazed to see Nodding Donkies (oil pump) everywhere. I would be interested to learn if anyone can corroborate this eventuality. This just shows you what a load of bushwaa we get fed by the mainstream media toadies and altruistic govts about oil exploration. That is another issue you might wish to explore.
100
I started watching Sam on youtube back when that ship Evergreen blocked the Suez Canal, he sure knows his stuff and being from the industry, has all the right contacts.
80
Sal does know his stuff. He gave evidence in Congress, so they must have thought he was good.
You correctly pointed out he ‘…has all the right contacts’ as they obviously know what is really happening on the ground and at sea. Sal lectures at University, so he must be very busy; I would say he is obsessed. He recommended the blockade of Iranian ships weeks ago but it took the US weeks to decide; they probably don’t want our mates in China joining the fight.
20
We travelled through the Innaminka area maybe 15 years ago and I think I can recall the “noddies” then.
50
Vicki – They are known as ‘Nodding Donkies’ due to the up and down motion. Maybe the various Govts wanted to keep it quiet, to avoid the loony left going there and causing mayhem.
I would love to learn: i) how much they produce; ii) whether it is heavy or light crude; 3) how they transport the crude and to whom and where it goes. We should all know this as it is important for our fuel security.
30
Dongara is still producing, sent to Singapore now that Kwinana is kaput
00
That is the WA Perth Basin. I wonder if Jo has a map of all our wells
00
Looks like the enemies of TrumpJesus are at work down under.
50
Please use all his ABC-approved pronouns:
TrumpPutinH!tlerKingSpoiledBratJesusSatan
(have I left anything out?)
/ schist.
50
Was setting up a new TV yesterday and unfortunately in the setup for FTA TV the default was the ABC. I had to watch a news segment on the Iran/ Hormuz situation. The presenter described Trump as the “mad king”. I was gobsmacked that our national broadcaster has stooped so low. The US is still our major ally last time I checked. To call the leader of that ally in that way was utterly disgraceful. But who do I complain to? Done it before with emails of protest etc. Waste of time. Shut it down I say, and sell all the best bits. Waste of taxpayers money.
120
We had two refineries left but now we’ve somehow managed to allow one to catch on fire! This startling and disturbing fact couldn’t be a clearer indictment of Australia’s lame duck political system which unbelievably saw fit to implement dopey decisions to gut our oil refinery capacity from eight in 1990 to, as of today, our last one to somehow refine fuel for the whole of Australia.
110
The biggest refinery in the most populous state is burning, that can’t be good.
70
Will Victorian motorists start panic buying at the pump.
50
A certainty I would have thought. First reaction is always panic. Its one reason most people aren’t suited to jobs or sports that require you to stay calm to avoid harm.
50
Threeways roadhouse near Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory are saying their buy price for diesel has dropped by $0.68 cents a litre .
90
I noted this morning at coastal service stations in my district that diesel price has dropped 10 cents overnight
It crossed my mind that the world economy revolving on oil based products is now the focus of countries reliant on export markets, China of course is one of the biggest export countries, but also the oil suppliers cannot allow their income to drop by too much. And therefore how long it would take for cooperation and coordination to manage the situation collectively
40
Price war in regional Victoria today which is not what I was expecting, diesel was $3.07 then $3.03 now it’s $2.97 at 2 servos with unleaded also dropping and for those wondering there was a line up to get fuel so a few were taking advantage of the discount prices .
20
Mmmmm, I smell a RAT.
What a wonderful excuse for fuel shortage.
90
Fact is that Albanese Labor from May 2022 increased RET 32% to RET 82% and commenced a reckless spending programme of rebates and incentives to reinforced their net zero ambition.
Why did China dump so many EVs into Australia 2024/25 and create a stockpile of financing expenses with, on the surface, sales so slow in Australia?
Conspiracy theory, maybe. And of course 47 years of Iran and proxies attacking Israel and other targets is the main game. However, Iran is supported by China and Russia, North Korea. Maybe stopping the Iran nuclear threat was of interest to their allies?
20
Why the big deal on nuclear bombs in Iran?? plenty of other countries have them, including the most warlike such as Israel. If Iran wanted to wipe out a lot of people a nuclear bomb would be one of the worst ways to do it.
Just think of what you can do with bioresearch these days, inserting DNA and making new diseases that only the most debased evil countries would do.. oh wait…
Nuclear bombs are so old hat, that is definitely NOT the reason Trump started this war.
12
The other countries that have “bombs” are not run by the “Twelver” cohort. Or have major populations where involvement with a specific “fight” always leads to “paradise”.
40
A fire?
Probably a borked software update, all the rage now. 😁
/sarc
Never mind, the war is nearly over isn’t it? (president J3sus said so)
How many times has it been nearly over now?
The agricultural factor is rearing its head as expected with massive global impacts looming. Food availability and prices will make the affordability crisis now look tame.
Naptha requires a dedicated post.
Propagation delay means you’ll feel it late this year and next year.
NZ has 3 weeks fuel, Oz about the same (data corrected from earlier data outage) but still severe, and a fire is the last thing we need.
I wonder how much more we (the taxpayer) had to pay for that tanker of US oil vs normal cost?
The fat lady ain’t even close to singing.
More boots on the ground vs msm/whitehouse waffle.
If you’re thinking of self sufficiency, go for legumes as they fix their own Nitrogen…
40
Then implement crop rotation. Legumes, brassicas, roots.
10
Rabbits and chickens eat those things. Umm, good!
00
President What ? , no one said a thing when Obama had a range of memorabilia with him being depicted as Jesus ! And yes I know it was stupid as was his excuse .
50
System failure, technical fault reported
40
To quote Mandy Rice Davies in the Profumo Affair and the denial by UK Secretary of State John Profumo, “he would say that, wouldn’t he”
40
Australia’s Strategic Fuel Reserve myth;
https://britbrief.co.uk/business/energy/australias-fuel-reserve-the-truth-behind-us-storage-myth.html
20
If you had any doubts that Albanese Labor are in damage control now but from the start of the fuel supply crisis were determined to use it to their political advantage, in their minds, to promote Renewable Energy Target Labor legislation and regulation including their exercise in futility so called renewables based on inefficient and unreliable wind and solar technologies, and electric vehicles, listen to their sales pitch, not only Minister for Energy Bowen but Ministers for Resources, Agriculture, the Treasurer, and others. They turn to rewewables propaganda at every opportunity.
The future can only change when Labor Green & Teal no longer have the numbers to block repeal bills in House of representatives and the Senate, and Federation of States parliaments where more power is held than Federal.
40
According to my Google search Austalia has over 22 million registered cars and some 400,000 registered trucks and a population of 26 million. Should we reach a nationwide total fuel shortage it will affect all of the registered owners directly and very personally – I can,t imagine the implications and the ramifications of such an event.
30
I expect there will be more missing shopping trolleys as the private vehicles run out of fuel and people have to carry their groceries further.
The supermarkets do deliver now so that service might get a boost providing they can get fuel for their vehicles.
I think most of the stuff on supermarket shelves is cardboard packaging, Probably all comes from China. But eventually fresh food will be in short supply as freight slows down.
Maybe we should start a list of the best tinned fish, vegetables and fruit from overseas suppliers. I think my last packet of walnuts came from California. The last tin of sardines came from poland.
Peter Ridd advised us in today’s video that most of our seafood is now imported as we close fisheries in the wake of really bad science:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntB7L8Ud-Js
40
‘The supermarkets do deliver now so that service might get a boost providing they can get fuel for their vehicles.’
Chinese EV small vans, maybe only three wheels…
10
And the return of the “bread man” and/or the “milk man”?
My visits to Sri Lanka (village life) have the the bakery products sold/delivered door to door by three wheelers.
00
Following from my previous post about the Karrick process.
There’s also Garbage Pyrolosis. Here’s the Brave A.I. summary:
Garbage pyrolysis is a thermochemical process that converts municipal solid waste (MSW) into fuel and recyclable materials by thermally decomposing organic matter in the total absence of oxygen at high temperatures (typically 300–900 °C). This method transforms complex waste into pyrolysis oil, combustible gas, and char, offering a cleaner alternative to incineration by significantly reducing emissions of nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides.
The process yields an average of 45–50% oil, 35–40% gases, and 10–20% char, depending on the specific technology and feedstock composition. High-calorific waste streams, such as plastics, tires, and medical waste, are particularly suitable, with plastics alone capable of producing over 80 wt% oil under optimised conditions. The resulting pyrolysis oil can be refined for use as diesel generator fuel or burner fuel, while the combustible gas can be recycled to provide the energy required for the process itself, often eliminating the need for supplementary fuel.
Could use all those newspapers and cardboard piling up for ground fill.
60
There can be no doubt that UN interference, and government cooperation, aside Australia could be self sufficient and a major exporter of more energy and food than now.
And for Australians economic prosperity far stronger than we have experienced to date at any time past, zero debt again as the Howard Government achieved repaying Labor debt from 1995/96 by June 30, 2006.
As the new Coalition Leader Taylor and Deputy Leader Canavan have been pointing out, everything needed is here from educated people to minerals and energy resources.
40
Few people seem to be aware that the new gross debt and unfunded Labor Budget for 2013/14 items like NDIS resulted in a gross debt of over $400 billion inherited by Abbott Government, and Treasurer Hockey after reviewing an independent audit of the Labor Budget stated his 2014/15 Budget was a budget repair exercise and that it would take a few years to return the budget to a surplus.
The 2019/20 Freydenberg Budget (Morrison Government) forecast surplus by 30 June 2020. Early January 2020 COVID-19 arrived and unforeseen expenses for the Federal Government in support of the Federation of States with primary responsibility for Public Health and Hospitals and so on resulted in a deficit result. For 2022/23 Freydenberg forecast economic recovery underway however, conservatively, another deficit result. In October 2022 Albanese Labor Treasurer Chalmers revised the Budget for 2022/23 and announced a surplus forecast based on windfall tax receipts from the recovering economy and various creative accounting changes including cuts to defence spending etc.
With a gross debt of now passing $1 trillion and deficit for 2025/26 forecast, and forward estimates of deficits for the next decade, we need a government that utilises all natural resources and capabilities here for greatly improved economic prosperity future.
40
Aside from the political optics of ‘doing something’ it’s hard to see what Albanese and Wong are actually achieving by scurrying around the regional petro-capitals. The media is dutifully reporting that Albo is securing fuel for Australia (or attempting same), however Australian governments have exactly zero input into the international petroleum trade – and no buy side trade status.
Incoming cargoes of refined products are arranged by established traders – most of which are massive international operations. The Australian arms of Viva, BP, ExxonMobil, and traders like Ampol, Glencore and Trafigura don’t need much hand-holding by the ALP in terms of running their business relationships with regional sources of product.
The only visible achievements are TV grabs of a solemn-looking Albanese in foreign places reporting on pinky promises, from essentially neutral/friendly governments, that they probably won’t apply export controls on exports to Australia – unless they need to do so, obviously.
The whiff of desperation, internal contradiction, and ‘too little too late’ adds colour and texture to the comprehensive failure of Australia’s national energy strategy.
(And you, Angus Taylor, are a significant contributor to the current crisis.)
70
2020 Minister for Energy Angus Taylor;
https://www.minister.industry.gov.au/ministers/taylor/media-releases/australia-strengthens-fuel-security-new-us-arrangement
10
Also fuel 2020 PM Morrison
https://www.scottmorrison.com.au/media/boosting-australias-fuel-security
10
Denis’ two links nicely highlight the continuity of policy failure in Canberra.
The US crude oil storage strategy, tooted by Taylor, which was supposed to give us ‘fuel security’, obviously depended upon there being refineries that could use that particular crude blend in their product slate to produce actual usable fuel.
At that time Australia had four refineries, running a total of about 500,000 bbl/d. With physical 1.7mmbbls in storage in Louisianna, that equated to about 4 days consumption (always assuming the refineries could configure to run whatever cargo of light sour or sweet crude was actually shipped).
A few months later that storage situation ‘improved’ when (despite Morrison acknowledging the strategic importance of domestic refining) Kwinana and Altona refineries announced their closures – reducing Australian refinery capacity to around 230,000bbl/d – but obviously increasing the US storage contingency supply time to nearly 8 days.
Fiddling.
And don’t get me started on Angus’ ‘Net Zero’ plan.
https://www.minister.industry.gov.au/ministers/taylor/media-releases/australias-plan-reach-our-net-zero-target-2050
In a nutshell:
The principles are: technology not taxes; expand choices not mandates; drive down the cost of a range of new technologies; keep energy prices down with affordable and reliable power; and, be accountable for progress.
The Plan focuses on driving down technology costs and accelerating their deployment at scale across the economy.
It’s a funny thing, but whenever governments back buzzword ‘technology’, things turn to dust at light speed.
61
00
Countless cars destroyed at BYD China …. “A violent blaze has ripped through a BYD facility in China, with dramatic footage of the inferno revealing the full extent of the damage.
The fire broke out at a parking structure within a Shenzhen industrial park at 2:48am (AEST) on Tuesday, April 14.
Videos circulating on social media show a hellish scene, with thick black smoke billowing from the Pingshan district facility and a massive plume visible for kilometres into the sky.”
News.com
50
UPDATE: Refinery operations face months of disruptions
Luckily Viva Energy can arrange some extra ships of petrol to cover the losses:
If finding extra ships of petrol so easy, why didn’t they do it a few weeks ago? It would have been handy…
UPDATE: Labor to stop war in Iran
What is our Defence Minister smoking?
Apparently we will use our fuel deficiency, our diesel subs, our non-existent merchant navy and achieve exactly what? What leverage do we have? We’ll stop sending iron ore and gold to China unless Iran plays nice?
90
Albo said he wanted de escalation and then they followed his advice according to him .
20
The sticking point to a more permanent peace is Iran’s refusal to give up on its nuclear weapons.
The best we could do to help is support Trump’s efforts to bring that about!
80
Compromise is the key, both sides will settle for 10 years grace.
‘The White House has rejected an Iranian proposal to suspend uranium enrichment for five years.
‘The offer came after the US demanded during peace talks that Tehran halt nuclear activity for a minimum of 20 years, officials in Washington and Tehran said.’ (UK Telegraph)
03
Jo on the channel 7 news at 6.00pm they had a comment from green groups showing the fire and then the statements that solar and wind don’t cause this sort of pollution.
Interestingly the statement wasn’t balanced by images of windmills burning or smashed solar panels, apparently only fossil fuels pollute . The journalists also didn’t bother to mention that while making electricity part of the time, neither wind or solar produce anything else. Don’t mention the 1000’s of life enriching by-products like fertiliser, medicines, plastics, etc etc etc..
Oh well none of these greens actually live “the ideal” life. You know take nothing but photos, (wait, all those nasty by products are in their phones) leave nothing but footprints, No shoes or thongs though, just bare feet.
50
The solution, of course, is combo coal fired power stations AND CTL (Coal to liquids – synthetic diesel and petrol)…they are absolutely cost effective, and provide complete sovereign fuel security.
There are just so many upsides:
Build them (eg) in the LaTrobe valley – enough fuel for hundreds of years and there’s no limit to the amount of raw material that can be stockpiled (coal doesn’t have an expiry date).
Exceptional win-win efficiencies – CTL plants generate their own power and significant “wastage”. That wastage can be exported as electricity to the grid. What’s more, you can run the CTL side (dynamically) as heavy or lean as you choose so that you can focus on CTL when the sun shines/wind blows and the grid doesn’t want the power…And on electricity export overnight, cloudy, calm.
This really is an everyone wins technology – it provides firming and backup power for a renewable heavy grid (no one is going to convince Old Blackout of his insanity) so he can think of it as a mega-battery; it provides the liquid fuel security that the Defence, Agricultural, Logistics and Industrial sectors are begging for…and gives us the capacity for fertiliser production too. Finally it provides absolutely appropriate “perfect fit” jobs for a community like the LaTrobe Valley.
Finally, it’s absolutely proven technology – South Africa has been self-sufficient on the back of this tech for decades; China’s CTL capability is the third biggest coal consumer in the world (after India and the rest of China). It works, it’s cost effective, it offers total energy security to Australia, and it’s an absolute perfect fit in every respect.
And there just isn’t any downside…it can be HELE too, if anyone cares.
Sadly, since it’s an actual solution, it has no friends whatsoever amongst the progressives.
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Well, it looks like the May 2025 war gaming exercise will come in handy!
“Australian Government quietly war-gaming a perfect storm: fuel at $4 a litre, H5 bird flu jumping from birds straight to humans and animals, power blackouts, supply chains collapsing, and full-blown social unrest. 350 bureaucrats, emergency services, supermarkets, and charities all huddled in Canberra ‘identifying gaps’. Mate, are they prepping for the crisis… or scripting it?”
Coincidence that real fuel shortages and bird flu chatter are already heating up?
Just coincidence, like Covid…
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https://www.facebook.com/reel/881935351562053 John Wagner discussing a waste to fuel facility, this guy gets things done.
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The refinery spokesman for Viva confirmed that the unit that caught fire was the alkylation unit, it makes a low vapour pressure component of Avgas and petrol, it is one of about seven different streams which is blended to make petrol,
The main hit is to Avgas, used by piston engined aircraft and helicopters such as Robinsons, they can rejig the plant to continue making petrol in similar volumes as before.
Only the Viva refinery makes Avgas in Australia.
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I wonder if all the other 6 refineries are able to come online, will the Government remove the 35% carbon tax for it to be viable? My Company made the blinds ( Essentially a pipe block off ) for Kwinanna`s shutdown, I note they were not blown up like SA Power Stations, just mothballed!!
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Their ABC lends a hand:
PM confirms purchase of 100m litres of diesel in bid to boost supply amid Iran war oil crisis
In short:
Australia has secured two fuel shipments under new powers that allow the federal government to underwrite the delivery of additional cargoes.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese made the announcement during a trip to Malaysia, saying the 100 million litres of additional diesel would be sent to Australia from Brunei and South Korea.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-04-16/new-powers-used-to-secure-additional-diesel-shipments/106571682
So, the front run is the implication that Albanese’s panic oil diplomacy is already paying off – and foreign governments are obligingly freeing up diesel to sell to Australia. And possibly (if you don’t read down) that our doughty PM has himself bought us a couple of tankers of the good stuff.
The reality is that Viva Energy has purchased two shipments of diesel, totalling 570,000bbls 90 megalitres). This is normal course of business for Viva – only in this instance Export Finance Australia has been authorised to underwrite the purchase in some undisclosed way. Whether or not this support was essential for Viva to continue its trade in refined products.
The “new powers” reflect changes to the EFIC Act, adding petroleum to the renewable energy adjacent commodities that can be stuffed into the Strategic Reserve hollow log. As EFA tells us:
These amendments also give effect to the Government’s commitment to establish a Critical Minerals Strategic Reserve, enabling EFA, on behalf of the Commonwealth, to secure supply, sell and selectively stockpile critical minerals to position Australia as a trusted and stable partner in high-value, vulnerable supply chains.
https://www.exportfinance.gov.au/newsroom/export-finance-australia-capabilities-strengthened-to-secure-critical-supplies-for-australia-s-economy/
So, here we have the Albanese Government boldly pushing out the public service, as a financial principal and physical holder, into the zany world of full spectrum commodities trading – with Chris Bowen Net Zero characteristics. Watch out Glencore; there’s a new kid on the block getting ready to eat your lunch.
Shirley nothing could go horribly wrong.
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” Export Finance Australia has been authorised to underwrite the purchase in some undisclosed way. ”
Pay WAY over the top for the oil just to make the Labor Party look good! Just a bribe in other words..
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And, from the above ABC link, it turns out that Albanese has deftly twisted Malaysian wrist to wring out another cast iron bulwark against Oilmageddon.
During their meeting, Australia and Malaysia reached an agreement to engage in energy trade on a “no surprises basis”.
It marked the third agreement Mr Albanese reached with Asian nations in less than a week to ensure fuel supply continued amid the Middle East war.
It’s not immediately clear how the ‘no surprises basis’ differs from the unrestricted ‘surprises basis’ that, until yesterday, apparently applied to Australia’s largest crude and refined products trading partner.
You’d have to wonder how on earth we got by before Albo tidied up.
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‘It marked the third agreement Mr Albanese reached with Asian nations in less than a week..’
Sounds like a real pivot to Asia now, its a shame our greatest ally is not filling ships in California and sending them down poste haste.
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‘Suspicious Flight Activity Over Geelong Fuel Refinery’
https://x.com/AlexSaundersAU/status/2044631105794658693
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