Work to start on 'cogeneration' power station at Kwinana oil refinery

29/6/95

The Western Australian landmark, BP Oil Refinery's distinctive Kwinana flame, will burn less brightly as a result of a major step forward in power generation.

Energy Minister Colin Barnett today signalled the start of work with a ground-breaking ceremony for Mission Energy's major 'cogeneration' power station at the Kwinana oil refinery plant, as the latest in a flurry of major new projects planned for the State.

"As a WA-first, the new power station will produce electricity from a combination of natural gas from the North West Shelf and previously wasted gas produced in the oil refinery process," Mr Barnett said.

"This electricity will be used to power the refinery and will also create electricity to be sold to Western Power to help it meet its growing energy demand.

"As WA's first major 'cogeneration and combined cycle' project, it will involve an investment of $150 million and will produce 116 megawatts of electricity."

The Minister said the cogeneration project had three distinguishing features:

·       it would be the first large-scale electricity cogeneration project in WA;

·       it would be the first gas sale by the private sector in the South-West since the deregulation of the gas market; and -

·       it would be the first privately-owned and operated project to sell a significant quantity of electricity to both Western Power and a private sector consumer.

"The project has now emerged as the State's first major independent power producer, providing electricity to Western Power's South West interconnected energy grid," Mr Barnett said.

The Minister said the Kwinana Cogeneration Plant was also set to become the cleanest thermal power plant in Australia and was expected to produce about 30 per cent less greenhouse gases than a conventional gas-fired power station.

The plant was one of nine power stations to be committed by the private sector since the deregulation of the energy market on January 1 this year.

Such private investment included the Pilbara Energy Project, Gas to the Goldfields project, Mt Ferrum Power Station and the Ord hydro-electric power station and represented a total of about 590 megawatts of new generation capacity for the State.

"This major project is another shining example of how the recent deregulation of the energy market has opened the door for a new wave of projects for this State," he said.

The Minister said another unique part of this project was that the heat produced as a by-product of electricity generation would no longer be wasted.

"Instead it would be used to produce steam which would then be fed back into the oil refinery process. The steam would also be used to produce additional electricity.

"The end result will be a power plant which is 30 per cent more efficient in energy use than a conventional power station."

As a part of the project, BP will use 40 megawatts of electricity for its refinery operation.  Western Power will then use the other 76 megawatts for the grid system to meet its increasing power demand.

"A conventional power station solely produces electricity, whereas this plant will capture the gas and heat which would otherwise be wasted, to provide an additional energy source," Mr Barnett said.

"The cogeneration project will essentially provide a clean, efficient and additional power source for the State without the costs to Western Power of investing in a new power station."

The plant is due to be completed by November next year.

The construction of the cogeneration plant is expected to generate a peak workforce of 220 people, with 25 permanent jobs being created during operation.

The Minister said the project would be a major boost to the Kwinana region.

Media contact: Carolyn Vicars 222 9699