DEVELOPMENT OF THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY:
THE AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT PERSPECTIVE
Thomas Bernecker
Australian Government, Department of Industry, Geoscience Australia
www.petroleum-acreage.gov.au
Australian Government Responsibilities
Australian Government (federal)
 National policy and regulation:
 Allocation of offshore petroleum titles
 Fiscal, monetary and taxation policy
 Foreign investment and trade
 Environmental approvals
State/Territory Governments (regional)
 Regional regulation:
 Allocation of onshore petroleum and
mining titles
 Collection of onshore royalties
 Also responsible for coastal waters
(3-mile zone)
AACC Energy Conference, January 2014 – Workshop 1
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Petroleum Industry Snapshot
Natural Gas
 158 Tcf / 4.5 Tcm of conventional gas
 +235 Tcf / 6.7 Tcm of coal bed methane
 400 Tcf / 11.3 Tcm of shale gas (US EIA)
 3rd largest global LNG exporter
 LNG exports of 24 mtpa (A$14 billion)
 Seven LNG projects under construction
 1,100 PJ of dom-gas production (260 PJ of
CBM)
Oil and Condensate
 Currently a net oil importer
 Significant condensate and shale liquids
potential
AACC Energy Conference, January 2014 – Workshop 1
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LNG Project Overview
Operating Projects:
 North West Shelf Venture, Darwin LNG, Pluto
LNG
 Combined production capacity of over 24 mtpa
 Customers in Japan, China and Korea
Projects under Construction:
 Conventional Offshore LNG:
Gorgon LNG, Wheatstone LNG, Ichthys LNG
 Floating LNG: Prelude FLNG
 FLNG projects in planning:
Bonaparte, Scarborough, Browse
 CBM-LNG: Queensland Curtis LNG, Gladstone
LNG, Australia-Pacific LNG
Image courtesy of Woodside Energy Ltd
 Combined production capacity of over 60 mtpa
 Total capital investment of over A$180 billion
AACC Energy Conference, January 2014 – Workshop 1
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Key Investment Considerations
 Proximity to key Asian markets
 Strong economic resilience and world class
business environment
 Stable objective-based petroleum regulatory
regime
 Security of title with clear role of Government,
regulators and industry
 Pre-competitive data and analysis available
at cost of transfer
 Ongoing efforts to reduce regulatory burden
 Highly prospective acreage
 Near record levels of petroleum activity
 31 offshore areas released for work program
bidding in 2013
 Proposed 2014 release to include areas for
cash bidding
AACC Energy Conference, January 2014 – Workshop 1
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North Perth Basin Permit WA-481-P
awarded in August 2012 to:
Murphy Oil / Kufpec / Samsung
2 large areas available:
12,400 km2 (163 grat. blocks)
Guaranteed work program $80 mio,
including 3 exploration wells
Current
Permit
Round 1
21 Nov 2013
Round 2
22 May 2014
6,540 km2 (87 grat. blocks)
Proposed for Release:
25,765 km2 (360 grat. blocks)
Large scale exploration since 2012:
4 permits operated by BP/Statoil
3 new permits awarded in 2013 to
Murphy Oil/Santos and Chevron
Re-Release
22 May 2014
Proposed
for Release
(work program)
Proposed
for Release
(cash bidding)
AACC Energy Conference, January 2014 – Workshop 1
Current
Permit
W13-6
W13-7
Round 1
21 Nov 2013
W13-8
Big gas
Round 2
22 May 2014
Re-Release
22 May 2014
N-Carnarvon Basin
• 73% of Australia’s total
hydrocarbon production
• 1.2 Tcf of gas and 108
MMbbl of liquids
produced in 2012
(APPEA, 2013)
Oil, condensate,
gas
Proposed
for Release
(work program)
Proposed
for Release
(cash bidding)
www.petroleum-acreage.gov.au
The 2013 Acreage Release Product
 New streamlined acreage release documentation
with emphasis on regional geology
 Short geological summaries of gazettal areas
 Supplementary compilation of published reports (USB)
 New set of stratigraphic charts (DVD)
 Comprehensive open file data package at cost of transfer
2.5 TB of data
AACC Energy Conference, January 2014 – Workshop 1
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Development of the Oil & Gas Industry
Key Priorities
 Stable regulatory regime with ongoing
streamlining and improvement
 Best and safest offshore petroleum
operations in the world
 Environmentally sustainable development
 Attractive new investment opportunities to
support ongoing exploration and development
 Select cash bidding areas from 2014
Key Challenges
 Regulatory duplication
 Skills and labour
 Infrastructure capacity constraints
 Productivity
AACC Energy Conference, January 2014 – Workshop 1
www.petroleum-acreage.gov.au
Further information
 TEAM AUSTRALIA Business Seminar (supported by AACC),
Monday 3 Feb, 5.30pm, Post Oak Hilton
 AUSTRALIA Booth (No. 1047), International Pavilion, NAPE 2014
 2013 Acreage Release: www.petroleum-acreage.gov.au
 National Offshore Petroleum Titles Administrator: www.nopta.gov.au
 National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority:
www.nopsema.gov.au
 Geoscience Australia: www.ga.gov.au
 Australian Petroleum News eNewsletter: petroleum.exploration@industry.gov.au
AACC Energy Conference, January 2014 – Workshop 1