scarpa mate ,have a captain cook  at this;The showdown came in...

scarpa mate ,have a captain cook  at this;

The showdown came in mid-2006 in Perth. United States-based multinational Exxon had a team of executives in Australia running the numbers over the viability of the giant Gorgon gas project off the north-west coast.

According to some present at the meeting, the Exxon team delivered an ultimatum. Unless "every molecule of gas" was available for export, they would walk away from the Gorgon project, in which they held a one-third share.

Carpenter stood his ground. He thanked them for their efforts and said, if that was the case then, regrettably, the project was dead and they had nothing further to discuss.

Within 24 hours, the Exxon executives, in a slightly more accommodative tone, requested another meeting in which they helpfully declared that, having re-crunched the numbers, they were confident they could meet both domestic and export requirements.

What the eastern states should have learned from WA

The west, however, has thrived with a gas reservation policy. There's more than enough for export, and domestic users are paying far less than their east coast cousins.

Here are a few snippets from respected energy research group EnergyQuest.

"It's well past the time for those of us on the east coast to eat humble pie about West Australian government policy," it said.

"So far, most of the criticisms about the west's gas reservation policy have failed to materialise.

"Has it impeded LNG investment? No. Has it killed further gas development? No.

"More pointedly, has the absence of a domestic gas policy and high prices stimulated an east coast domestic gas exploration and investment boom? Unfortunately, not."

Deregulation largely has been a wondrous thing, freeing up capital, industry and individuals to pursue new ventures.

Sometimes, however, regulation is needed to save us from ourselves. Think about that the next time you check that outrageous gas bill stuck to the fridge.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-23/the-case-for-an-east-coast-gas-reservation-policy/9074896
Viva carpenter

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