High quality jet fuel for Victorians with less waste

Yarraville Terminal was busy with upgrades in 2023 and the latest project has seen a new pipeline dedicated to the transport of jet fuel from ships to the tanks on site.

“It is essential that jet fuel is the highest quality, so a dedicated wharf line means that only jet fuel will be transported through the pipeline eliminating the risk of cross-contamination in the product and improving the efficiency of our jet fuel import operations,” said Yarraville Terminal Manager, Steve Flynn.

Yarraville Terminal previously had two operating pipelines which were used to transfer multiple products from ships to tanks at the site.

“Following the unloading of one type of product, the pipeline needs to be flushed out so it can be used for the next product type,” said Steve.

“During this process, a portion of the new fuel mixes with the previous product left behind in the pipeline, creating a waste fuel blend that cannot be used. This waste is then exported to a local refinery to be reprocessed."

In order to reduce the waste fuel produced through this flushing process, the Yarraville team installed a new dedicated pipeline for jet fuel, so there's no need to flush the line or create any waste during jet fuel imports.

Together with other process improvements, the dedicated jet fuel import pipeline has helped Yarraville terminal to reduce its waste fuel by almost 50%.

“This means we are exporting waste fuel for reprocessing about half as much as we used to, drastically reducing the associated shipping costs,” said Steve.

“The dedicated jet wharf line reduces operational complexity as there is no need to flush the pipeline with product prior to import, saves time and protects the fuel quality. It’s a great solution for the terminal.”