Geelong Refinery

Geelong Refinery is a other facility operated by Viva Energy Refining Pty Ltd in VIC. Like all covered facilities, industrial operations generate significant emissions. Under Australia's Safeguard Mechanism, Geelong Refinery must keep its annual emissions below a stepping-down baseline — or purchase carbon credits to cover any overage.

In 2023–24, Geelong Refinery reported emissions of 1.05 Mt against a baseline obligation of 906 kt — an overage of 145 kt. The facility covered the 145 kt overage by purchasing 145,139 Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) — credits generated by carbon abatement projects elsewhere in Australia such as soil carbon farming, avoided land clearing, and landfill gas capture.

Purchasing credits is legal and intended by the Safeguard Mechanism's design — the policy deliberately allows facilities to choose between cutting on-site emissions or funding abatement elsewhere in the economy. Whether credit purchases represent genuine long-term decarbonisation depends on whether the facility's absolute emissions are trending down over time. The chart above shows the trajectory since reporting began. This question applies to all covered facilities under the Safeguard Mechanism, not Geelong Refinery specifically.

Across the other sector, 8 of 8 covered facilities reported emissions above their baseline in 2023–24. The table below compares Geelong Refinery with other other facilities covered by the Safeguard Mechanism.