Searching for solutions to the Middle East oil crisis:
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In 1970, the SEC built its second largest power station in Kwinana and the facility was designed to operate on diesel oil. However, the Middle East oil crisis resulted in a sudden, sharp increase in oil prices in WA and it became too prohibitive to use this fuel to generate electricity on a large scale. In January 1973, the world price for a barrel of “Saudi Light” oil was a mere $2.59 but it had risen to the princely sum of $11.65 by January 1974.
Above - Kwinana Power Station 1971.
 Google Earth - Kwinana Power Station
To reduce the reliance on diesel fuel, the SEC of WA decided to install two new units at Kwinana Power Station which could use coal as well as oil and natural gas. The new units – numbers five and six – were commissioned in 1978 and 1979. Later, Kwinana Power Station’s Stages B and C were converted to natural gas in October 1984. Kwinana Power Station became one of the few power stations in the world that could use either oil, coal or natural gas and change over to a different fuel at the mere press of a button in the mid-1980s. This was seen as an engineering feat, attracting industry visitors from all over the world.
 Next Section >> Advancements in the 1980s.
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