Australia struggles to stop downstream exodus
Australia’s energy security takes another hit with ExxonMobil opting to shutter its Victoria refinery
ExxonMobil plans to convert its 90,000bl/d Altona refinery into a fuel import terminal, after concluding it is no longer economically viable. Coming a little over three months after a similar announcement from BP concerning its 138,000bl/d Kwinana refinery in Western Australia, the shutdown will shrink Australia’s refining capacity from 457,000bl/d to just 229,000bl/d by 2022. With the country then having to rely more heavily on regional fuel suppliers to meet demand, there are growing concerns about how the government intends to safeguard its energy supply lines. Lifeline falls short Although the coronavirus pandemic sent the Australian downstream into a tailspin in 2020, refinery operators
Also in this section
17 February 2026
The 25th WPC Energy Congress, taking place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from 26–30 April 2026, will bring together leaders from the political, industrial, financial and technology sectors under the unifying theme “Pathways to an Energy Future for All”
17 February 2026
Siemens Energy has been active in the Kingdom for nearly a century, evolving over that time from a project-based foreign supplier to a locally operating multi-national company with its own domestic supply chain and workforce
17 February 2026
Eni’s chief operating officer for global natural resources, Guido Brusco, takes stock of the company’s key achievements over the past year, and what differentiates its strategy from those of its peers in the LNG sector and beyond
16 February 2026
As the third wave of global LNG arrives, Wood Mackenzie’s director for Europe gas and LNG, Tom Marzec-Manser, discusses with Petroleum Economist the outlook for Europe’s gas market in 2026
