Following increased gas supply into the Western Australian domestic gas market, Alcoa has reverted to using gas to fuel 100% of the powerhouse boilers at the Kwinana and Pinjarra alumina refineries. Diesel was introduced as a temporary fuel source for some operational needs last week. Despite this development, Santos continues to experience production constraints at two gas facilities, resulting in ongoing uncertainty in the gas market. On this basis, the Kwinana refinery continues to operate with one production unit offline and reduced process flows.In light of ongoing gas supply challenges in Western Australia, a production unit has been taken offline at Alcoa’s Kwinana Alumina Refinery. In addition, process flows at the refinery have been reduced. These actions represent an approximate 30 percent reduction in production at the refinery. At this stage, no timeline has been identified for restoring full production.The Pinjarra and Kwinana refineries have been using diesel as a temporary fuel source for some operational needs. This switch to diesel was made on Friday (6 January) as an immediate response to the domestic gas issue prompted by production challenges being experienced by key gas suppliers.
Following increased gas supply into the Western Australian domestic gas market, Alcoa has reverted to using gas to fuel 100% of the powerhouse boilers at the Kwinana and Pinjarra alumina refineries. Diesel was introduced as a temporary fuel source for some operational needs last week. Despite this development, Santos continues to experience production constraints at two gas facilities, resulting in ongoing uncertainty in the gas market. On this basis, the Kwinana refinery continues to operate with one production unit offline and reduced process flows.In light of ongoing gas supply challenges in Western Australia, a production unit has been taken offline at Alcoa’s Kwinana Alumina Refinery. In addition, process flows at the refinery have been reduced. These actions represent an approximate 30 percent reduction in production at the refinery. At this stage, no timeline has been identified for restoring full production.The Pinjarra and Kwinana refineries have been using diesel as a temporary fuel source for some operational needs. This switch to diesel was made on Friday (6 January) as an immediate response to the domestic gas issue prompted by production challenges being experienced by key gas suppliers.
