NEW GEELONG REFINERY

Press, Volume XCI, Issue 27634, 15 April 1955, Page 8

NEW GEELONG REFINERY

OIL SUPPLIES FOR DOMINION

FIRST CARGO TO ARRIVE TODAY

The tanker, Woensdrecht, which will arrive at Lyttelton this morning, is carrying 880,000 gallons of fuel oil—the s first cargo to reach New Zealand from the new Shell refinery at Geelong, Victoria.

The Geelong refinery is one of four new undertakings in Australia built as part of a new trend to site refineries near the larger centres of population, rather than at the source of supply of crude oil. The construction of these new refineries contributes to the move towards refining selfsufficiency in the South Pacific area. This new refinery is situated five miles from Geelong on Corio Bay, and is being developed in two main stages. The first, completed at a cost of £10,000,000, came on stream last year and was officially opened on Marth 18, 1954, by the Governor-General of Australia (Field-Marshal Sir William Slim). The second stage, which includes the installation of a catalytic cracking complex, will be completed by the end of this year, costing a further £ 10,000,000. The cracking unit will convert heavy oil fractions from the distillation plant Into motor spirit and will have an annual capacity of 650,000 tons. The annual capacity of Geelong refinery will be 1,750,000 tons of crude oil drawn from Seria oilfield in North Borneo and the Middle East. Both are 100 per cent, sterling sources of supply. A major development scheme by the Geelong Harbour Trust has provided berths for the new 18,000-ton generalpurpose tankers, and facilities ashore include bulk storage for 400,000 tons of crude oil or refined products. An eight-inch pipeline, the largest in Australia, carries the refined products to Melbourne, .36 miles away. Incorporating such features as a protective wrapping of glass fibre, the line was constructed at a cost of £600,000. The Woensdrecht is a Netherlandsowned tanker of 10,935 tons. She was built in California in 1945, being launched under the name of Coyote Hills. The vessel is turbine-electric driven, and is equipped with modern navigational aids, including radar, direction finder and gyro compass Her port of registry is Rotterdam. '