Four chimney stacks at the Shell Clyde refinery NSW demolished with controlled explosives

Four out of five chimney stacks at the former Shell Clyde refinery in Sydney’s west on the Parramatta River at Rosehill have been demolished today.

The controlled demolition took place this morning as part of an operation by Viva Energy to remove redundant infrastructure on the site.

Shell closed the refinery on September 30 2012 and 350 jobs were cut.

The company is now converting the site into a finished fuels import terminal.

There are three 100m high stacks and two 80m stacks which were demolished, however one was postponed due to a lean in the tower.

The controlled explosions occurred over a 30-second period.

North West Metropolitan Region Commander, Assistant Commissioner Denis Clifford, said while extensive planning has been undertaken to ensure the demolition progresses safely, there will be no vantage points for members of the public.