Viva Energy has warned of reduced short-term output at its Geelong refinery following a fire at the facility, sending its shares sharply lower in afternoon trade.
The company said on Monday that diesel and jet fuel production would operate at around 80% of capacity, while petrol output is expected to run at approximately 60% in the near term.
Shares in the fuel retailer fell 7.1% to their lowest level since 19 March by 1:55pm AEST (3:55 am GMT), after trading resumed following a halt last Thursday.
In an ASX announcement, the company said: "Geelong Refinery expects to be producing diesel and jet fuel at approximately 80% of capacity and petrol at approximately 60%.
"The Company has sufficient fuel stocks to cover this reduced production and expects to maintain normal fuel supply to our customers following this incident."
The disruption follows a fire on 15 April at the Geelong site, the larger of Australia’s two refineries, at a time when the country is facing heightened concerns over fuel security amid global supply disruptions linked to the Iran conflict.
Viva Energy said its residue catalytic cracking unit (RCCU) remains offline as operations stabilise, with plans to restart the unit in the coming weeks.
Once restored, the company expects production of diesel, jet fuel and petrol to recover to above 90% of capacity, while investigations into the cause of the fire continue.
Despite the operational setback, Viva Energy reported strong underlying performance in its refining business. The Geelong refining margin surged 176.6% in the first quarter, while total group sales volumes increased 5.1%.
The company also said it had secured additional fuel cargoes through agreements with the federal government to bolster supply.
In its 1Q2026 Operating Update, Viva noted: "The Geelong refinery does not typically source Middle Eastern crude, with current crude sourced predominantly from North and South America, South-East Asia, and Australia.
"These crude supply flows have not been impacted, and the Geelong refinery has firm crude supply through to July with high confidence that this supply can continue."
Viva Energy currently has a market capitalisation of approximately A$4.15 billion.
