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The Kemerton Industrial Park and Bunbury region

Last update 2002

Kemerton Industrial Park

See also the Kwinana industrial estate

The Kemerton Industrial Park is located 180 km south of Perth, the capital of Western Australia and 17 km north east of Bunbury (and 150 km south of the industrial region of Kwinana), a major city and port of the region. 

For more than a decade to 2004, the WA has been promoting the industrial park as a site for industry including even an aluminium smelting industry (although energy costs were high by international standards). Kemerton was perceived to be an alternative to Kwinana which was approaching capacity. Today there are only two significant activities with a modest scale silicon project and a Becher-process synthetic rutile plant supplied by a 18 000 tonne chlorine plant.

The Bunbury port does not handle freight containers and SCM and Simcoa as the two major companies located at Kemerton, export through Fremantle some 160 km north by road. A port (costing some A$300 m) has been discussed for Kemerton as the Bunbury port is considered unsuitable for deep draft vessels and does not handle containers.

In 2004, a 260megawatt gas-fired power plant was announced to service the South West Region due for operation late 2005.

There are major titanium mineral sand projects located in the region and Millennium Inorganic Chemicals (formerly SCM Chemicals see below) as a titanium dioxide pigment manufacturer has signalled intentions to double production.

Power is provided by a coal and gas fired station. The two plants are located at Kemerton rather than say Kwinana to its north for being close to raw materials. The State Government has an active program to promote investment at Kemerton and has considered funding a port facility.