Viva Energy has announced major construction delays at its Geelong refinery, and will be seeking an exemption from new national low sulphur fuel standards.
The company says its $350 million new low sulphur gasoline project won’t be finished until mid-2025, with the new standards set to kick in next year.
That means it won’t meet new national emission guidelines that start next year, CEO Scott Wyatt said the company is seeking a waiver from the government.
“I’m fairly confident that we’ll receive the waiver, there’s really no choice in respect to our capability in any case,” he said.
“We play a critical role in obviously supplying fuel to the market and doing everything we can to move it as quickly as possible.”
Mr. Wyatt said ongoing component shortages are behind the delay in the plans to build the new gasoline treatment unit.
The company has also reported a net loss of over $77 million over the last six months, with a crane component dropped in June largely to blame, with damage and repair costs reportedly reaching as high as $40 million.
