❓ A WA parliamentary question regarding the Minister's visit to Varanus Island after the gas explosion, followed by the Minister's detailed response on the extent of the damage, repair efforts, and potential impact on gas supply.
AnsweredQoN 274Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
APACHE ENERGY GAS PLANT EXPLOSION — MINISTERIAL VISIT TO VARANUS ISLAND
I refer to the recent gas explosion on Varanus Island and the minister’s visit to the island last week. Can the minister please inform the house of the details of the visit? Mr F.M. LOGAN
I refer to the recent gas explosion on Varanus Island and the minister’s visit to the island last week. Can the minister please inform the house of the details of the visit? Mr F.M. LOGAN
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for his question. As members have seen from television footage that has been shown on numerous occasions, this was a very serious incident. Members will have seen the extent of the explosion on Varanus Island. I was invited by Apache Energy to observe the extent of the damage after the flames had been extinguished and security had been put in place around the damaged area and the damaged gas train. The media were also invited by Apache to attend last Friday to see for themselves the extent of the damage. It was an important trip for me. It allowed me to understand that the repair of the plant and the reinstatement of production would take longer than envisaged, and to recommend to the Premier that because of that delay there should be a meeting of key stakeholders and affected customers; and, of course, that was done when the Premier called a very large group of key stakeholders together on Sunday. In effect the incident affected three pipelines that come onshore and into the gas process and trains on Varanus Island. There is a large 16-inch pipe that comes from the Sinbad field and feeds production into both the Harriet Joint Venture processing train and the John Brookes processing train. Next to that 16-inch pipeline are two smaller pipelines called “Sales” that take the gas off the island, onto the mainland and into the Dampier to Bunbury natural gas pipeline. One of those pipes ruptured. Apache does not know why the pipe ruptured, but it did. As it blew apart it actually caught fire and exploded, as we saw on TV. It also ruptured the other pipelines and caused the significant fireballs that we saw on TV. The reason that fire continued for a time was that Apache locked off the gas from going into the pipelines and locked off the gas from where it goes onshore. However, there was still a significant amount of gas in the pipeline and that is the reason we saw the footage of those large balls of flame shooting up into the air. It appears that there is extensive damage to the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. The extent of damage is being evaluated by the engineers on site. It appears that there was minimal damage to the John Brookes gas processing train. Apache Energy is trying globally to source two 16-inch high-pressure gas valves. These are not the sorts of things one can buy from Bunnings or Coventry. They are very large pieces of high-pressure equipment. If the valves cannot be sourced, they will have to be made to replace those that were destroyed, along with the section of pipeline that will allow gas to be fed back into the John Brookes train. The Harriet Joint Venture train is extensively damaged, and Apache tells us that it will take a significant time to bring it back into service. The John Brookes train may well be brought back into service within a couple of months or slightly longer, depending on the availability of those valves and the extent of damage that has been sustained, which will be revealed once they start doing trials and high-pressure testing. If they are successful in getting the John Brookes train up and running, it will mean that 150 terajoules of gas—basically half the amount that Varanus Island produces—can then be fed back into the system in order to relieve this situation. From the observations I have made and the advice I have received from the Apache engineers to date, it will obviously take significantly longer to restore the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. Finally, I congratulate Apache Energy on dealing quickly and without injury or loss of life with a very serious and major incident.
Mr F.M. LOGAN replied: I thank the member for his question. As members have seen from television footage that has been shown on numerous occasions, this was a very serious incident. Members will have seen the extent of the explosion on Varanus Island. I was invited by Apache Energy to observe the extent of the damage after the flames had been extinguished and security had been put in place around the damaged area and the damaged gas train. The media were also invited by Apache to attend last Friday to see for themselves the extent of the damage. It was an important trip for me. It allowed me to understand that the repair of the plant and the reinstatement of production would take longer than envisaged, and to recommend to the Premier that because of that delay there should be a meeting of key stakeholders and affected customers; and, of course, that was done when the Premier called a very large group of key stakeholders together on Sunday. In effect the incident affected three pipelines that come onshore and into the gas process and trains on Varanus Island. There is a large 16-inch pipe that comes from the Sinbad field and feeds production into both the Harriet Joint Venture processing train and the John Brookes processing train. Next to that 16-inch pipeline are two smaller pipelines called “Sales” that take the gas off the island, onto the mainland and into the Dampier to Bunbury natural gas pipeline. One of those pipes ruptured. Apache does not know why the pipe ruptured, but it did. As it blew apart it actually caught fire and exploded, as we saw on TV. It also ruptured the other pipelines and caused the significant fireballs that we saw on TV. The reason that fire continued for a time was that Apache locked off the gas from going into the pipelines and locked off the gas from where it goes onshore. However, there was still a significant amount of gas in the pipeline and that is the reason we saw the footage of those large balls of flame shooting up into the air. It appears that there is extensive damage to the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. The extent of damage is being evaluated by the engineers on site. It appears that there was minimal damage to the John Brookes gas processing train. Apache Energy is trying globally to source two 16-inch high-pressure gas valves. These are not the sorts of things one can buy from Bunnings or Coventry. They are very large pieces of high-pressure equipment. If the valves cannot be sourced, they will have to be made to replace those that were destroyed, along with the section of pipeline that will allow gas to be fed back into the John Brookes train. The Harriet Joint Venture train is extensively damaged, and Apache tells us that it will take a significant time to bring it back into service. The John Brookes train may well be brought back into service within a couple of months or slightly longer, depending on the availability of those valves and the extent of damage that has been sustained, which will be revealed once they start doing trials and high-pressure testing. If they are successful in getting the John Brookes train up and running, it will mean that 150 terajoules of gas—basically half the amount that Varanus Island produces—can then be fed back into the system in order to relieve this situation. From the observations I have made and the advice I have received from the Apache engineers to date, it will obviously take significantly longer to restore the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. Finally, I congratulate Apache Energy on dealing quickly and without injury or loss of life with a very serious and major incident.
I thank the member for his question. As members have seen from television footage that has been shown on numerous occasions, this was a very serious incident. Members will have seen the extent of the explosion on Varanus Island. I was invited by Apache Energy to observe the extent of the damage after the flames had been extinguished and security had been put in place around the damaged area and the damaged gas train. The media were also invited by Apache to attend last Friday to see for themselves the extent of the damage. It was an important trip for me. It allowed me to understand that the repair of the plant and the reinstatement of production would take longer than envisaged, and to recommend to the Premier that because of that delay there should be a meeting of key stakeholders and affected customers; and, of course, that was done when the Premier called a very large group of key stakeholders together on Sunday. In effect the incident affected three pipelines that come onshore and into the gas process and trains on Varanus Island. There is a large 16-inch pipe that comes from the Sinbad field and feeds production into both the Harriet Joint Venture processing train and the John Brookes processing train. Next to that 16-inch pipeline are two smaller pipelines called “Sales” that take the gas off the island, onto the mainland and into the Dampier to Bunbury natural gas pipeline. One of those pipes ruptured. Apache does not know why the pipe ruptured, but it did. As it blew apart it actually caught fire and exploded, as we saw on TV. It also ruptured the other pipelines and caused the significant fireballs that we saw on TV. The reason that fire continued for a time was that Apache locked off the gas from going into the pipelines and locked off the gas from where it goes onshore. However, there was still a significant amount of gas in the pipeline and that is the reason we saw the footage of those large balls of flame shooting up into the air. It appears that there is extensive damage to the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. The extent of damage is being evaluated by the engineers on site. It appears that there was minimal damage to the John Brookes gas processing train. Apache Energy is trying globally to source two 16-inch high-pressure gas valves. These are not the sorts of things one can buy from Bunnings or Coventry. They are very large pieces of high-pressure equipment. If the valves cannot be sourced, they will have to be made to replace those that were destroyed, along with the section of pipeline that will allow gas to be fed back into the John Brookes train. The Harriet Joint Venture train is extensively damaged, and Apache tells us that it will take a significant time to bring it back into service. The John Brookes train may well be brought back into service within a couple of months or slightly longer, depending on the availability of those valves and the extent of damage that has been sustained, which will be revealed once they start doing trials and high-pressure testing. If they are successful in getting the John Brookes train up and running, it will mean that 150 terajoules of gas—basically half the amount that Varanus Island produces—can then be fed back into the system in order to relieve this situation. From the observations I have made and the advice I have received from the Apache engineers to date, it will obviously take significantly longer to restore the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. Finally, I congratulate Apache Energy on dealing quickly and without injury or loss of life with a very serious and major incident.
In effect the incident affected three pipelines that come onshore and into the gas process and trains on Varanus Island. There is a large 16-inch pipe that comes from the Sinbad field and feeds production into both the Harriet Joint Venture processing train and the John Brookes processing train. Next to that 16-inch pipeline are two smaller pipelines called “Sales” that take the gas off the island, onto the mainland and into the Dampier to Bunbury natural gas pipeline. One of those pipes ruptured. Apache does not know why the pipe ruptured, but it did. As it blew apart it actually caught fire and exploded, as we saw on TV. It also ruptured the other pipelines and caused the significant fireballs that we saw on TV. The reason that fire continued for a time was that Apache locked off the gas from going into the pipelines and locked off the gas from where it goes onshore. However, there was still a significant amount of gas in the pipeline and that is the reason we saw the footage of those large balls of flame shooting up into the air. It appears that there is extensive damage to the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. The extent of damage is being evaluated by the engineers on site. It appears that there was minimal damage to the John Brookes gas processing train. Apache Energy is trying globally to source two 16-inch high-pressure gas valves. These are not the sorts of things one can buy from Bunnings or Coventry. They are very large pieces of high-pressure equipment. If the valves cannot be sourced, they will have to be made to replace those that were destroyed, along with the section of pipeline that will allow gas to be fed back into the John Brookes train. The Harriet Joint Venture train is extensively damaged, and Apache tells us that it will take a significant time to bring it back into service. The John Brookes train may well be brought back into service within a couple of months or slightly longer, depending on the availability of those valves and the extent of damage that has been sustained, which will be revealed once they start doing trials and high-pressure testing. If they are successful in getting the John Brookes train up and running, it will mean that 150 terajoules of gas—basically half the amount that Varanus Island produces—can then be fed back into the system in order to relieve this situation. From the observations I have made and the advice I have received from the Apache engineers to date, it will obviously take significantly longer to restore the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. Finally, I congratulate Apache Energy on dealing quickly and without injury or loss of life with a very serious and major incident.
One of those pipes ruptured. Apache does not know why the pipe ruptured, but it did. As it blew apart it actually caught fire and exploded, as we saw on TV. It also ruptured the other pipelines and caused the significant fireballs that we saw on TV. The reason that fire continued for a time was that Apache locked off the gas from going into the pipelines and locked off the gas from where it goes onshore. However, there was still a significant amount of gas in the pipeline and that is the reason we saw the footage of those large balls of flame shooting up into the air. It appears that there is extensive damage to the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. The extent of damage is being evaluated by the engineers on site. It appears that there was minimal damage to the John Brookes gas processing train. Apache Energy is trying globally to source two 16-inch high-pressure gas valves. These are not the sorts of things one can buy from Bunnings or Coventry. They are very large pieces of high-pressure equipment. If the valves cannot be sourced, they will have to be made to replace those that were destroyed, along with the section of pipeline that will allow gas to be fed back into the John Brookes train. The Harriet Joint Venture train is extensively damaged, and Apache tells us that it will take a significant time to bring it back into service. The John Brookes train may well be brought back into service within a couple of months or slightly longer, depending on the availability of those valves and the extent of damage that has been sustained, which will be revealed once they start doing trials and high-pressure testing. If they are successful in getting the John Brookes train up and running, it will mean that 150 terajoules of gas—basically half the amount that Varanus Island produces—can then be fed back into the system in order to relieve this situation. From the observations I have made and the advice I have received from the Apache engineers to date, it will obviously take significantly longer to restore the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. Finally, I congratulate Apache Energy on dealing quickly and without injury or loss of life with a very serious and major incident.
It appears that there is extensive damage to the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. The extent of damage is being evaluated by the engineers on site. It appears that there was minimal damage to the John Brookes gas processing train. Apache Energy is trying globally to source two 16-inch high-pressure gas valves. These are not the sorts of things one can buy from Bunnings or Coventry. They are very large pieces of high-pressure equipment. If the valves cannot be sourced, they will have to be made to replace those that were destroyed, along with the section of pipeline that will allow gas to be fed back into the John Brookes train. The Harriet Joint Venture train is extensively damaged, and Apache tells us that it will take a significant time to bring it back into service. The John Brookes train may well be brought back into service within a couple of months or slightly longer, depending on the availability of those valves and the extent of damage that has been sustained, which will be revealed once they start doing trials and high-pressure testing. If they are successful in getting the John Brookes train up and running, it will mean that 150 terajoules of gas—basically half the amount that Varanus Island produces—can then be fed back into the system in order to relieve this situation. From the observations I have made and the advice I have received from the Apache engineers to date, it will obviously take significantly longer to restore the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. Finally, I congratulate Apache Energy on dealing quickly and without injury or loss of life with a very serious and major incident.
Mr F.M. LOGAN replied: I thank the member for his question. As members have seen from television footage that has been shown on numerous occasions, this was a very serious incident. Members will have seen the extent of the explosion on Varanus Island. I was invited by Apache Energy to observe the extent of the damage after the flames had been extinguished and security had been put in place around the damaged area and the damaged gas train. The media were also invited by Apache to attend last Friday to see for themselves the extent of the damage. It was an important trip for me. It allowed me to understand that the repair of the plant and the reinstatement of production would take longer than envisaged, and to recommend to the Premier that because of that delay there should be a meeting of key stakeholders and affected customers; and, of course, that was done when the Premier called a very large group of key stakeholders together on Sunday. In effect the incident affected three pipelines that come onshore and into the gas process and trains on Varanus Island. There is a large 16-inch pipe that comes from the Sinbad field and feeds production into both the Harriet Joint Venture processing train and the John Brookes processing train. Next to that 16-inch pipeline are two smaller pipelines called “Sales” that take the gas off the island, onto the mainland and into the Dampier to Bunbury natural gas pipeline. One of those pipes ruptured. Apache does not know why the pipe ruptured, but it did. As it blew apart it actually caught fire and exploded, as we saw on TV. It also ruptured the other pipelines and caused the significant fireballs that we saw on TV. The reason that fire continued for a time was that Apache locked off the gas from going into the pipelines and locked off the gas from where it goes onshore. However, there was still a significant amount of gas in the pipeline and that is the reason we saw the footage of those large balls of flame shooting up into the air. It appears that there is extensive damage to the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. The extent of damage is being evaluated by the engineers on site. It appears that there was minimal damage to the John Brookes gas processing train. Apache Energy is trying globally to source two 16-inch high-pressure gas valves. These are not the sorts of things one can buy from Bunnings or Coventry. They are very large pieces of high-pressure equipment. If the valves cannot be sourced, they will have to be made to replace those that were destroyed, along with the section of pipeline that will allow gas to be fed back into the John Brookes train. The Harriet Joint Venture train is extensively damaged, and Apache tells us that it will take a significant time to bring it back into service. The John Brookes train may well be brought back into service within a couple of months or slightly longer, depending on the availability of those valves and the extent of damage that has been sustained, which will be revealed once they start doing trials and high-pressure testing. If they are successful in getting the John Brookes train up and running, it will mean that 150 terajoules of gas—basically half the amount that Varanus Island produces—can then be fed back into the system in order to relieve this situation. From the observations I have made and the advice I have received from the Apache engineers to date, it will obviously take significantly longer to restore the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. Finally, I congratulate Apache Energy on dealing quickly and without injury or loss of life with a very serious and major incident.
I thank the member for his question. As members have seen from television footage that has been shown on numerous occasions, this was a very serious incident. Members will have seen the extent of the explosion on Varanus Island. I was invited by Apache Energy to observe the extent of the damage after the flames had been extinguished and security had been put in place around the damaged area and the damaged gas train. The media were also invited by Apache to attend last Friday to see for themselves the extent of the damage. It was an important trip for me. It allowed me to understand that the repair of the plant and the reinstatement of production would take longer than envisaged, and to recommend to the Premier that because of that delay there should be a meeting of key stakeholders and affected customers; and, of course, that was done when the Premier called a very large group of key stakeholders together on Sunday. In effect the incident affected three pipelines that come onshore and into the gas process and trains on Varanus Island. There is a large 16-inch pipe that comes from the Sinbad field and feeds production into both the Harriet Joint Venture processing train and the John Brookes processing train. Next to that 16-inch pipeline are two smaller pipelines called “Sales” that take the gas off the island, onto the mainland and into the Dampier to Bunbury natural gas pipeline. One of those pipes ruptured. Apache does not know why the pipe ruptured, but it did. As it blew apart it actually caught fire and exploded, as we saw on TV. It also ruptured the other pipelines and caused the significant fireballs that we saw on TV. The reason that fire continued for a time was that Apache locked off the gas from going into the pipelines and locked off the gas from where it goes onshore. However, there was still a significant amount of gas in the pipeline and that is the reason we saw the footage of those large balls of flame shooting up into the air. It appears that there is extensive damage to the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. The extent of damage is being evaluated by the engineers on site. It appears that there was minimal damage to the John Brookes gas processing train. Apache Energy is trying globally to source two 16-inch high-pressure gas valves. These are not the sorts of things one can buy from Bunnings or Coventry. They are very large pieces of high-pressure equipment. If the valves cannot be sourced, they will have to be made to replace those that were destroyed, along with the section of pipeline that will allow gas to be fed back into the John Brookes train. The Harriet Joint Venture train is extensively damaged, and Apache tells us that it will take a significant time to bring it back into service. The John Brookes train may well be brought back into service within a couple of months or slightly longer, depending on the availability of those valves and the extent of damage that has been sustained, which will be revealed once they start doing trials and high-pressure testing. If they are successful in getting the John Brookes train up and running, it will mean that 150 terajoules of gas—basically half the amount that Varanus Island produces—can then be fed back into the system in order to relieve this situation. From the observations I have made and the advice I have received from the Apache engineers to date, it will obviously take significantly longer to restore the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. Finally, I congratulate Apache Energy on dealing quickly and without injury or loss of life with a very serious and major incident.
In effect the incident affected three pipelines that come onshore and into the gas process and trains on Varanus Island. There is a large 16-inch pipe that comes from the Sinbad field and feeds production into both the Harriet Joint Venture processing train and the John Brookes processing train. Next to that 16-inch pipeline are two smaller pipelines called “Sales” that take the gas off the island, onto the mainland and into the Dampier to Bunbury natural gas pipeline. One of those pipes ruptured. Apache does not know why the pipe ruptured, but it did. As it blew apart it actually caught fire and exploded, as we saw on TV. It also ruptured the other pipelines and caused the significant fireballs that we saw on TV. The reason that fire continued for a time was that Apache locked off the gas from going into the pipelines and locked off the gas from where it goes onshore. However, there was still a significant amount of gas in the pipeline and that is the reason we saw the footage of those large balls of flame shooting up into the air. It appears that there is extensive damage to the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. The extent of damage is being evaluated by the engineers on site. It appears that there was minimal damage to the John Brookes gas processing train. Apache Energy is trying globally to source two 16-inch high-pressure gas valves. These are not the sorts of things one can buy from Bunnings or Coventry. They are very large pieces of high-pressure equipment. If the valves cannot be sourced, they will have to be made to replace those that were destroyed, along with the section of pipeline that will allow gas to be fed back into the John Brookes train. The Harriet Joint Venture train is extensively damaged, and Apache tells us that it will take a significant time to bring it back into service. The John Brookes train may well be brought back into service within a couple of months or slightly longer, depending on the availability of those valves and the extent of damage that has been sustained, which will be revealed once they start doing trials and high-pressure testing. If they are successful in getting the John Brookes train up and running, it will mean that 150 terajoules of gas—basically half the amount that Varanus Island produces—can then be fed back into the system in order to relieve this situation. From the observations I have made and the advice I have received from the Apache engineers to date, it will obviously take significantly longer to restore the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. Finally, I congratulate Apache Energy on dealing quickly and without injury or loss of life with a very serious and major incident.
One of those pipes ruptured. Apache does not know why the pipe ruptured, but it did. As it blew apart it actually caught fire and exploded, as we saw on TV. It also ruptured the other pipelines and caused the significant fireballs that we saw on TV. The reason that fire continued for a time was that Apache locked off the gas from going into the pipelines and locked off the gas from where it goes onshore. However, there was still a significant amount of gas in the pipeline and that is the reason we saw the footage of those large balls of flame shooting up into the air. It appears that there is extensive damage to the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. The extent of damage is being evaluated by the engineers on site. It appears that there was minimal damage to the John Brookes gas processing train. Apache Energy is trying globally to source two 16-inch high-pressure gas valves. These are not the sorts of things one can buy from Bunnings or Coventry. They are very large pieces of high-pressure equipment. If the valves cannot be sourced, they will have to be made to replace those that were destroyed, along with the section of pipeline that will allow gas to be fed back into the John Brookes train. The Harriet Joint Venture train is extensively damaged, and Apache tells us that it will take a significant time to bring it back into service. The John Brookes train may well be brought back into service within a couple of months or slightly longer, depending on the availability of those valves and the extent of damage that has been sustained, which will be revealed once they start doing trials and high-pressure testing. If they are successful in getting the John Brookes train up and running, it will mean that 150 terajoules of gas—basically half the amount that Varanus Island produces—can then be fed back into the system in order to relieve this situation. From the observations I have made and the advice I have received from the Apache engineers to date, it will obviously take significantly longer to restore the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. Finally, I congratulate Apache Energy on dealing quickly and without injury or loss of life with a very serious and major incident.
It appears that there is extensive damage to the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. The extent of damage is being evaluated by the engineers on site. It appears that there was minimal damage to the John Brookes gas processing train. Apache Energy is trying globally to source two 16-inch high-pressure gas valves. These are not the sorts of things one can buy from Bunnings or Coventry. They are very large pieces of high-pressure equipment. If the valves cannot be sourced, they will have to be made to replace those that were destroyed, along with the section of pipeline that will allow gas to be fed back into the John Brookes train. The Harriet Joint Venture train is extensively damaged, and Apache tells us that it will take a significant time to bring it back into service. The John Brookes train may well be brought back into service within a couple of months or slightly longer, depending on the availability of those valves and the extent of damage that has been sustained, which will be revealed once they start doing trials and high-pressure testing. If they are successful in getting the John Brookes train up and running, it will mean that 150 terajoules of gas—basically half the amount that Varanus Island produces—can then be fed back into the system in order to relieve this situation. From the observations I have made and the advice I have received from the Apache engineers to date, it will obviously take significantly longer to restore the Harriet Joint Venture gas processing train. Finally, I congratulate Apache Energy on dealing quickly and without injury or loss of life with a very serious and major incident.
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