The Australian Federal Government’s National Gas Infrastructure Plan (NGIP) and Future Gas Infrastructure Investment Framework has paved a path for secure gas supplies for the next 20 years.
The long-term development initiative has been designed to shore up energy for household and manufacturing purposes and includes priorities for east coast supply and infrastructure up until at least 2040.
The NGIP sets out a long-term development pathway that locks in supply for households and manufacturers, and five priority actions for east coast gas supply and infrastructure out to 2040.
The NGIP recommends that one new basin will need to be brought into play before 2030 to meet projected east coast supply and cites important basins that need to be developed within the next nine-years that include, the Narrabri gas project in NSW, the Beetaloo sub-basin, in the Northern Territory, and the Galilee North Bowen basins in Queensland.
The expansion of existing pipelines as well as the construction of new pipelines has been flagged as essential to transport gas supplies to east coast markets as well as from north to south to sustain expanding supply from the north and waning supply in the south of Australia.
Minister for Industry, Energy and Emissions Reduction Angus Taylor described the NGIP as a framework for gas infrastructure investment that prioritises the identification of regions needing development to avoid future energy supply issues.
“This will ensure our domestic gas prices remain internationally competitive. The United Kingdom and Europe have experienced price increases over 400 per cent in recent months due to gas shortages.
“The Government cannot sit back and allow that to happen here. Australian prices have remained 60 to 70 per cent lower than prices in Asia and Europe even in light of this major energy shock.
“Unlocking basins and getting gas to where it is needed will support our job-creating industries. Our focus on gas and energy security has helped to grow our manufacturing sector, which is now at more than one million jobs – levels not seen since 2009.”
The NGIP encompasses an Investment Framework, which lays out the principles for potential Government support and has called on the gas industry to submit expressions of interest to help identify critical projects needing support to spur production. Included within this sphere are projects that support hydrogen, carbon capture and storage, and biomethane.
“The Government wants industry to make these investments, and the Investment Framework and EOI will allow us to take action to accelerate the development of critical projects to Final Investment Decision,” Mr Taylor said.
