A second Dom gas phase for Australia

In the early days developing the Australian gas industry Western Australia had to make a commitment to take natural gas from the North West shelf project. First, they needed to build a 1500 km pipeline. This is saw an amount of gas reserved to meet the needs of Western Australia. Today the Australian gas industry is well developed including taking gas streams from low quality coal fields. The industry is struggling in international markets and will continue to do so for the next couple of years until recent expansion projects is matched by growth in demand. LNG transported from Australia is turned into a liquid and kept at -160° whilst it is shipped. If we had a national gas grid we would not have the losses associated with converting it into a liquid. We need a pipeline system to link gas to urban centres and across Australia. If gas is to be a critical part of the future energy mix of Australia now is the time to ensure we do not have to import it. What’s important is we have access to the gas whilst the price we should pay for it is another issue to be debated. A properly managed gas reserves would sell a commercial price including within Australia. Early planning in this is essential otherwise gas may not be available for our own use.

Paul Raftery / www.paulraftery.com.au