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santos chief executive david knox takes crack

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    Santos chief executive David Knox takes crack at Canberra's gas rules

    by: David Crowe
    From: The Australian
    May 29, 2013 12:00AM


    David Knox

    David Knox has taken aim at Canberra for creating rules that undermine new gas projects Source: AdelaideNow

    SANTOS chief executive David Knox has taken aim at Canberra for creating rules that undermine new gas projects, warning yesterday that household energy bills would rise unless political leaders cleaned up the regulatory mess.

    As federal parliament considers new rules on coal seam gas, Mr Knox stepped up the industry call for reforms to end duplicate state and federal regulation that he and others blame for delaying mammoth investments.

    Mr Knox said the industry needed a "steady hand on the tiller'' in Canberra but that the federal government's latest move on coal seam gas regulation ran counter to that need.

    While states already regulate CSG, the Gillard government is seeking to legislate a federal power over the projects as well if they impact water supplies, inserting a "water trigger'' into the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.

    "We need to remove, wherever we can, overlapping legislation,'' Mr Knox said yesterday at the oil and gas industry's annual conference.

    "And obviously the one thing we're very concerned about is the change in the EPBC Act with the water trigger. That is not consistent with a steady hand on the tiller in my view. It's a change and moving things around for no environmental benefit.''

    Santos is seeking stronger support from Canberra and from NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell to develop CSG fields in the Pilliga region that are big enough to supply NSW when existing supply contracts from Victoria and South Australia soon expire.

    Mr Knox said the overlapping state and federal rules slowed projects and the water trigger in particular added to the uncertainty.

    "Unless we get this right we are going to see a shortage of gas, effectively, and I just don't want to see that,'' he said.

    The water trigger is currently before the Senate where Labor and the Greens are expected to join forces to pass it.

    David Crowe is attending APPEA's annual conference in Brisbane as a guest of the organisation.

    http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/santos-chief-executive-david-knox-takes-crack-at-canberras-gas-rules/story-fn59niix-1226652566843
 
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