Media Statements - Incident at Woodside's gas plant

2/01/08

Energy Minister Francis Logan said the incident at the North West Shelf gas plant operated by Woodside in Karratha was unfortunate.

“This incident may have an impact on electricity supplies to the main grid,” Mr Logan said.

“I endorse Western Power’s plea for all Western Australians to do what they can to conserve electricity tomorrow.

“I have been informed by Western Power that with careful management of demand by all customers, we will hopefully avoid the possibility of rolling outages.”

Western Power has recommended that customers:

turn off all non-essential appliances and lighting;
if possible, avoid using air-conditioners;
if an air-conditioner is essential, set it no lower than 24C;
close windows and blinds to stop the home heating up; and
turn off all appliances at the wall.

The Minister was told of the Woodside incident this morning and was kept informed of developments throughout the day.

Rolling outages involve cutting off power to sections of the grid for no more than 40 minutes per area.

Minister's office - 9222 8950