GOING FURTHER FOR
PERFORMING RO AHEAD OF THE OPENING OF A NEW BITUMEN MODIFICATION FACILITY IN PORT BOTANY, ROADS & INFRASTRUCTURE SITS DOWN WITH PUMA BITUMEN AUSTRALIA’S GENERAL MANAGER, PHIL CHIRNSIDE, TO LEARN ABOUT THE COMPANY’S CAPABILITIES AND WORLDWIDE CONNECTIONS.
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ustralia’s road network length was calculated to be 877, 651 kilometres, in the BITRE - Australian Infrastructure Statistics Yearbook 2019. According to the Australian Bureau of statistics, the first use of asphalt as a surfacing material in Australian road building dates back to 1890. Crucial to the creation of asphalt is bitumen, a by-product of the crude oil refining process. In 2016, an Australian Road Research Board paper acknowledged that a number of Australian bitumen refineries had been closed or reduced to importation facilities. With the majority of bitumen imported 10
ROADS NOVEMBER 2020
to Australia it is important to ensure the quality and security of bitumen supply continues to be strong. This is where Puma Bitumen comes in as a major supplier of bitumen to the road construction market in Australia. Puma Bitumen is a division of Puma Energy, a global storage and supply specialist, providing energy solutions and related products to 47 markets around the world. Puma Bitumen operates globally and has a presence in 19 countries. The business leverages on the global experience and connectivity of Puma Energy, to ensure the quality and security of its bitumen supply chain.
Phil Chirnside, Puma Bitumen General Manager for Australia, says demand for water-borne supply of bitumen is greater than ever. Puma Bitumen having the largest bulk bitumen shipping fleet in the world makes us one of, if not the, strongest supplier in this space. “Around 93 per cent of bitumen globally is used in the construction of roads and only about 20 per cent of the circa.1500 crude oil types are suitable for the production of road quality bitumen, it is therefore a very specialised material,” Chirnside says. Bitumen comprises of more than 100,000 hydrocarbons and its performance properties can vary depending on the refining process
