Hi All,I have prepared another email as a follow up. If you...

Hi All,

I have prepared another email as a follow up.

If you wish, please feel free to utilize it for some points but please personalise it, so that it doesn't get treated as spam.

As per last time, please indicate when you have sent your email, if you feel comfortable doing so, so I can keep tabs.

Thanks in advance for your combined efforts!!!

B




To:
[email protected]

Cc:
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]@industry.gov.au>@regional.nsw.gov.au>@regional.nsw.gov.au>

The Hon. Courtney Houssos,

I write to request a meeting with you to discuss the PEP11 applications.

On 31 July 2024, I sent an email to various parties, as did many other aggrieved shareholders, for which we have yet to receive a formal response. I have included my original email below for your reference.

Since sending this email, I have followed up with phone calls to your office, to DRNSW MEG Assessments office and to Harriet Malone your Senior Policy Advisor, only to be told that I must send through another email to have someone call me to discuss my concerns or as Harriet suggested to request a meeting with you.

During our meeting I wish to discuss the following points with you:

• On 17 October 2023 NOPTA confirmed that the Joint Authorities had received a copy of their Recommendation. However, as a result of an FOI complaint, we now have confirmation in writing that whilst the Hon Madeline King MP was acting as the Commonwealth Joint Authority, neither she, nor her office ever received a copy of NOPTA’s recommendation. Have either you or your office received a copy of NOPTA’s recommendation regarding PEP11?
• Have you asked for a brief on PEP11?
• Did you vote in favour of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Sea Bed Mining and Exploration) Bill 2024?
• If you supported the above Bill, how do you think this might affect your ability to make an impartial decision on the PEP11 title extension?
• Why is DRNSW MEG Assessments undertaking a "comprehensive assessment" (on your behalf) when the Joint Authority Protocols state that it isn’t intended for NOPTA’s assessment process to be duplicated by the Joint Authority?
• Does DRNSW MEG Assessments have the requisite skills to undertake such an assessment? Yesterday, someone from the department described the PEP11 assessment as being “complex” and given assessments of this nature for their department are uncommon (i.e. PEP11 is the only offshore licence in NSW), perhaps they are not equipped to manage this task. This seems to be the only logical conclusion as to why it could be taking so much time for them to complete a “duplicate” assessment.
• Why does NSW need to redo the assessment work already undertaken by NOPTA, particularly when it had already been completed for John Barillaro in 2020, since it’s the same application?
• Section 59 and s 60 of the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006 (Cth), effectively gives the Commonwealth Minister's view on any decision precedence over that of the State Minister. That is, if the two Ministers disagree, it is the Commonwealth Minister's decision that will have effect as the Joint Authority's decision: s 59(2). Since your decision can been vetoed by the Hon Ed Husic MP anyway, (and taking into account your likely support of the recent Bill which was celebrated by NSW MPs as heralding the death of PEP11), what are the reasons for you delaying finalising your decision, unless it is to wilfully / in bad faith stall the decision-making process and, therefore, any progress of the PEP11 project itself?
• Do you believe that 9 months is a fair and reasonable timeframe to let this decision languish given the reasons outlined in the above points?
• Why is the NSW JA ignoring the Joint Authority Operating Protocol and the Federal Court decision to which it provided an undertaking to make the decision regarding PEP11 in accordance with the law and in accordance with fair and proper process?

I am happy to make myself available at a time that is convenient for you to discuss these concerns and I hope you will be able to reassure me that the Labor government is not engaging in similar nefarious and unfair actions as the previous government saw fit to, which caused significant financial harm to shareholders.

As you know, the former prime minister, without regard to transparency or public trust, assumed additional powers across his cabinet and ministries in secret, then used those powers to invalidly refuse the PEP 11 permit extension, despite the permit having the exploration potential of delivering much needed cheap, clean burning gas to Australia's East Coast gas market and the promise of providing the people of the Sydney Basin with abundant clean (compared to coal) cheap energy.

Shareholders have been held hostage to unacceptable and unprecedented political meddling for over 4 years now and this injustice needs to stop. The company that owns the license should be given a fair and reasonable opportunity to return to executing on the agreed government approved work program without any further undue political interference.

I look forward to hearing from you at your earliest opportunity.



Yours sincerely,

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