Australia Awards New Offshore Acreage

Australia has awarded new offshore acreage for petroleum exploration and carbon capture and storage (CCS) opportunities.

The Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Madeleine King will finalize permits for Esso and Beach Energy in the Otway and Sorrell Basins, with any discovered gas to support the domestic east coast market.

Exploration permits will also be finalized for Chevron, INPEX, Melbana and Woodside Energy on Australia’s west coast. In addition, 10 permits will be finalized for carbon capture and storage exploration.

“As ageing coal generation comes offline in coming years, gas will continue to be needed to firm renewable energy generation and as a backup during peak energy use periods,” King said. “Gas is critical for the transition. But it will be a diminishing proportion of our energy mix to 2050 as other storage technologies come online.”

The finalization of offshore exploration permits does not automatically allow new offshore gas production to occur. Separate and extensive safety and environmental approvals are required through Australia’s independent National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority.

There will be no new seismic surveying permitted to occur as part of the approved work program for each permit. Companies will instead be required to licence or reprocess existing seismic data.

Australian Energy Producers Chief Executive Samantha McCulloch welcomed King’s announcement of three years’ worth of acreage releases, which she says is critical to maintaining the pipeline of gas supply projects needed to ensure Australia’s long-term energy security.

“With oil and gas exploration at an all-time low across Australia, industry needs policy certainty and regulatory stability to invest in the next generation of gas supply to meet the significant demand for gas that Australia and our region will need.”

McCulloch said today’s announcement is an important step in the right direction, however it is imperative the Government open the next round of petroleum acreage permits as soon as possible to find and develop the next generation of gas supply.

“Australia is facing structural gas shortfalls from 2027 and the outlook will only worsen in the years to follow if we do not have a steady pipeline of new gas projects,” she said. “It has been two years since the last petroleum acreage release in what used to be an annual process. Australia has abundant gas resources but needs the political will to restore investment confidence and ensure timely approvals for much-needed new gas supply.”

McCulloch said the awarding of offshore acreage for CCS was crucial to the net zero ambitions of Australia and the region. “CCS has a critical role to play in the decarbonization of Australia’s economy, and Australia is ideally placed to become a leader in our region,” she said.