The spectre of Australia “quietly quitting” gas emerged again during the Energy Exchange Australia conference.
The phrase was used in 2023 in a speech by INPEX chief executive Takayuki Ueda who raised concerns about Australia quietly quitting the LNG business.
The comment was rejected by the Federal Government at the time, but keynote speakers and panellists at this month’s 2025 EXA conference raised concerns about government policy settings that were stifling investor confidence.
During a panel discussion at the EXA conference, INPEX Senior Vice President Bill Townsend said there were “some in senior levels of government who seem to think that net zero by 2050 means that there will be no hydrocarbons in the system, and that the energy transition is going to happen on a Tuesday”.
“If you ask some of our friends in Canberra what the (gas demand) outlook looks like they see it declining. The Future Gas Strategy is talking about an industry that is dwindling and dying over time, and we see it as exactly the opposite,” Mr Townsend said.
“If you have a competing narrative that’s a big challenge for us, including in schools where kids might be taught there is no future in gas, that’s it’s a dying industry, when all of us in this room can understand that’s not the case.
“In terms of policy settings, there is a concern… Australia is competing globally for capital.
“It’s the policy settings that historically made Australia an attractive investment climate now there are more challenges on the horizon with policy interventions that have worked against the gas industry and a government that has not been so supportive.”
On the policy settings theme, Chevron General Manager Major Capital Project Laura Boudreau said that companies had choices about where they can invest their money.
“Some of the recent shifts in the Australian Government are cause for concern: changes in taxes, approval timelines, price caps, export restrictions,” she said.
“Just one of things wouldn’t necessarily make a choice different for investment but the cumulative effect can cause us to be less competitive in the market.
“We see the same thing (as other companies) with the US making it investor friendly and there is competition for dollars.
“Businesses will invest money where it’s good to do business and where the surety of the profit is there.”
Woodside Energy Vice President Scarborough Michael Robinson said that in the area of regulatory approvals and environmental permits it was easier and with shorter time frames to get permits in the US than Australia.
He cited Woodside’s six-plus year wait for approval of plans to extend the life of the North West Shelf Gas Plant.
Approved by the State Government after six years, it is awaiting Federal approval, with an initial decision date pushed out from February 28 to March 31.
In a speech to open the conference, Woodside Energy Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Australia Liz Westcott said the uncertainty was already
putting at risk near-term supply from the NWS fields that could help address the supply gap that is predicted in 2028 in WA.
“It is challenging to invest in developments that extend beyond 2030 without certainty that we will be authorised to continue to operate beyond this date,” Ms Westcott said.
“This (approval) is not for any expansion of our operating activities. It is simply for approval of ongoing operations. To be really clear, the fence line at KGP is not
expanding, we are not building new kit, our footprint is not growing, this is an approval for existing operations.”
In a speech to open the conference, Woodside Energy Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Australia Liz Westcott said the uncertainty was
already putting at risk near-term supply from the NWS fields that could help address the supply gap that is predicted in 2028 in WA.
“It is challenging to invest in developments that extend beyond 2030 without certainty that we will be authorised to continue to operate beyond this date,” Ms Westcott said.
“This (approval) is not for any expansion of our operating activities. It is simply for approval of ongoing operations. To be really clear, the fence line at KGP is not
expanding, we are not building new kit, our footprint is not growing, this is an approval for existing operations.”
She said the cost-of-living crisis and the focus on energy security were contributing to growing public awareness of the importance of new gas supply.
“But we cannot be complacent about public support. As an industry, we cannot shy away from explaining why what we do matters,” she said.
“It matters because we provide a reliable energy supply to our customers, support thousands of jobs through our business activities and make a contribution to the
economy and community.
“It matters because of our role in progressing the energy transition, providing an energy supply that, when used to generate electricity, typically has half the
lifecycle emissions of coal and can firm and enable intermittent renewables.
“Last year, the NWS project supplied 14 per cent of Western Australia’s domestic gas.
“If I’m sounding like a broken record on our contribution, it’s because we need to make sure it’s understood what is at stake.”
Chevron Operations Director Danny Woodall also referenced the industry’s economic contribution.
“Contrary to what some might have you believe, we do pay our fair share in taxes,” he said.
“More than $17 billion was returned to state and federal governments in taxes and royalties in the past financial year. Chevron alone paid nearly $6 billion in 2023.
“These numbers are impressive, and they do demonstrate the importance of our industry and the significant economic benefits that it contributes to the country.
“But there’s a simpler truth about natural gas that can’t be reduced to statistics and it’s this: Our lives are better when have access to reliable, affordable energy
that gas supplies.
“It keeps the lights and the air conditioning on in our homes and businesses and it opens up innovative new industries like critical minerals, creating jobs, careers,
and other opportunities.
“When in abundant supply it helps keep our power bills lower, reducing pressure on household budgets.”