Federal Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen says Viva Energy’s oil refinery in Geelong – one of only two operating in Australia – continues to produce diesel and jet fuel despite being overcome by fire.
Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) was called to the refinery at 11:15pm last night after a fire broke out in the mogas section of the refinery, which is dedicated to producing petrol. Within this area, not all petrol-producing units have been affected by the fire.
Just after 8am, it was reported that the fire had been contained to a 30x30m area. Viva confirmed that all personnel have been accounted for and no one was injured.
Bowen spoke to the ABC this morning about the situation, indicating he’d been communicating with Viva Energy Australia chief executive officer Scott Wyatt throughout the night.
“At this point, the refinery is still producing diesel and jet fuel at reduced levels as a safety precaution, but is still producing, still operating,” he said.
“The major impact at this point appears to be more on petrol production but we’ll work closely with Viva over the course of today.”
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
Bowen said no conclusions could be made about the impact of the fire until it was under control, with water to be applied to the area throughout the day.
There are “no suspicious circumstances”, Bowen said.
“It appears to be an accident at this point,” he said. “What’s important is we come together and manage the situation.”
It comes as a fuel crisis hits Australia as oil supplies are interrupted by the Iran war, and the near-total closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has visited Singapore and Brunei in the past week to shore up Australian supplies of oil and fertiliser. This materialised in the Australia–Singapore Comprehensive Strategic Partnership 2.0 – which will see both countries support each other’s energy security through the trade of refined petroleum from Singapore and liquefied natural gas from Australia.
“We continue to make very good progress internationally on the imports to Australia, which is the majority of fuel that we consume, obviously, as I’ve always said, since the 28th of February,” Bowen said.
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