Caltex Australia upgrades capacity at Banksmeadow terminal

Caltex Australia has completed a major capacity upgrade to its Banksmeadow fuel distribution terminal in the state of New South Wales (NSW), in a bid to offer Bio E10 Unleaded petrol at more of its service stations in Sydney and other surrounding regions. The company has said that more than 120 of its service stations in NSW and 220 of its outlets across Australia currently offer Bio E10 Unleaded. The ethanol component in the Bio E10 Unleaded fuel will be mixed with unleaded petrol simultaneously through an in-line blending system as tankers are being loaded. This is expected to significantly decrease loading time, compared with the previous system of loading unleaded petrol at the Banksmeadow terminal in NSW before driving to another facility at Port Botany, NSW, to add the 10% ethanol component. Caltex has invested nearly A$3 million (US$2.9 million) in the upgrade to the Banksmeadow terminal and is investing in a similar upgrade at its Lytton terminal in the state of Queensland. Des King, Caltex Australia CEO, said: “As the largest primary wholesaler of petrol in NSW these upgrades are an essential component of our plan to meet the NSW government’s ethanol mandate and our commitments under the former federal government’s biofuels action plan.” (June 27, 2008)