Choke in gas supply makes imports, once unthinkable, almostinevitable

Fallingproduction at one of the country’s largest gas plants and a forecast slide insupply from fields off the south-eastern coast is making increasinglyinevitable what had been dismissed as unlikely development only a few yearsago: the need to import LNG.

The marketoperator has warned for months of looming shortfalls in gas – used ineverything from manufacturing to heating homes – and fears of supply problemshave spread beyond the major energy retailers. Other major companies examiningthe possibility of importing LNG now include Snowy Hydro, Woodside Energy,Shell and industrial users, including explosives manufacturer Orica and steelproducer BlueScope.