Environment Victoria has accused Viva Energy of downplaying the emissions from its proposed gas terminal in Corio Bay, which the company has denied.
Viva Energy released the environment effects statement for the project last week, which was now on public exhibition for 30 days.
Viva Energy’s proposed gas terminal at Geelong Refinery will include a floating gas terminal, an extension to Refinery Pier, a treatment facility and a seven-kilometre pipeline which the company said would help meet the fuel and gas energy security needs of the state.
Environment Victoria claimed Viva Energy had deliberately downplayed the emissions the project would create.
Environment Victoria campaigns manager Greg Foyster said Viva Energy’s statement estimated a total operating emissions of 47,906 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.
He said rival energy company AGL’s failed bid for a gas import terminal at Westernport, with similar technology and import volumes, had operating emissions of 449,390 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.
“The reason for such a large difference is that Viva has pulled a climate accounting trick and excluded the emissions from transporting the LNG to Victoria,” Mr Foyster said.
“In other words, they’re proposing to import massive amounts of gas in huge LNG tankers but not counting all the fuel that those boats will burn to get here.
“If transport emissions were included, then the climate impact of Viva Energy’s gas terminal could be up to 12 times higher.”
Viva Energy managing director Scott Wyatt said as Viva Energy was not importing the LNG, the company was not creating the emissions.
“We have set out the emissions that will be created by implementing this facility [and] we have plans to offset those emissions,” he said.
“We haven’t counted the emissions that are associated with bringing gas into the into the state because our role is not as a gas supplier.
“Our role is an infrastructure player in terms of providing the infrastructure for existing retailers and wholesalers and gas producers to bring gas into Victoria, so those emissions will very much sit with the suppliers as opposed to the operator of the terminal and that’s the way we’ve approached this submission.”
Viva Energy said the terminal would generate 150 to 200 jobs during construction and 50 to 70 permanent jobs in Geelong.
The statement and related documentation are now publicly available.
Details: vivaenergy.com.au
