industry news today AFR...West Australians back lifting export...

industry news today AFR...

West Australians back lifting export ban foronshore gasTom RabeWA political correspondentFeb 21, 2024 – 5.54pmAlmost twice as many Western Australians support opening up the state’s onshoregas fi elds for international export than those who oppose the plan, according tonew polling released ahead of a parliamentary review into WA’s much vaunteddomestic gas reserve.Industry frustration over the effectiveness of the government’s domestic reservefor offshore gas has prompted a parliamentary review into the longstanding policy,while the WA premier has also recently fl agged his willingness to reconsider anexport ban for onshore producers.In its latestMood of the Nationreport, communications fi rm SEC Newgate zeroed inon WA’s divisive energy debate, fi nding more than 40 per cent of respondentssupported a plan to overhaul an export ban for onshore gas in a bid to spurinternational investment.Onshore gas producers have seized on concerns of a future shortfall of thecommodity and increased pressure on the WA government to overturn the banthey say will stoke investment in the state’s energy sector and ultimately result inmore gas being produced.Just over 20 per cent of respondents opposed the plan, while a sizeable 36 per centwere yet to be swayed on the issue.Meanwhile, almost 75 per cent of respondents believed the government shouldmaintain its 15 per centdomestic reserve imposed on offshore gas producers[https://www.copyright link/companies/energy/wa-to-probe-gas-reservation-policy-not-delivering-for-ExclusiveListen to this article3min2/22/24, 6:47 AM West Australians back lifting export ban for onshore gashttps://www.copyright link/companies/energy/west-australians-back-lifting-export-ban-for-onshore-gas-20240220-p5f6hd 2/3big-users-20230627-p5djt6], a policy that the WA government has said helped the stateavoid an energy crisis experienced on the East Coast.A parliamentary inquiry examining the effectiveness of the offshore policy isexpected to release an interim report on Thursday as the state governmentgrapples with how to avoid a post-2030 domestic shortfall while encouraginginvestment in the market.Industry sources expect the report to spell out major issues with the transparencyof the current 15 per cent domestic reserve policy, and concerns whether majorproducers have been meeting their obligation to provide the domestic market withgas.The Newgate polling found 40 per cent of WA respondents believed the stategovernment was taking appropriate action on reducing carbon emissions, while 39per cent thought it wasn’t doing enough.The fi ndings were comparable to most other states, other than Queensland, where45 per cent of respondents did not believe the government was doing enough, andonly 29 per cent said the Miles government was taking appropriate action.While WA Premier Roger Cook has recently suggested the government isconsidering overturning the export ban for onshore gas,Wesfarmers earlier thismonth warned that a gas shortfall [https://www.copyright link/politics/federal/wesfarmers-raisesalarm-as-wa-warms-to-onshore-gas-backfl ip-20240202-p5f22v]would jeopardise futuregreen mineral processing.It is understood that billionaire Chris Ellison’s Mineral Resources pitched togovernment the implementation of fl exible contracts for onshore gas producers.The proposal would allow producers to export gas at international prices whenthere’s a domestic surplus of the commodity, but requiring them to sell it locallyshould there be a future shortfall.Mr Ellison warned the government last year that his company’s proposed 250-terajoule-a-day plant in the Perth Basin could only be justifi ed if it were able toexport some of the gas it produced.