Industry News

THE onshore gas industry could begin investing $1.35 billion a year within the next five years creating nearly 1500 local jobs, a new report shows.

The Pangaea Beetaloo Basin Development Model for Public Benefit has been derived from Pangaea’s 2015 work program and US shale gas industry well and logistics volume data.

Pangaea’s report was sent to the Gunner Labor Government and the Scientific Inquiry into Hydraulic Fracturing last night.

The model has been built around a concept of development units. Under this model there is an exploration unit, an appraisal unit and a production unit.

The report details the number of jobs, the expenditure and the education qualifications required to fill the positions.

It leverages some of its work off already completed work by Deloittes who completed a report in 2015 and an ACIL Allen report prepared for the Scientific Inquiry in to Hydraulic Fracturing last year.

The inquiry will deliver its final report to government in March. 

Important caveats in Pangaea’s report include the lifting of the fracking ban in April and the creation of a Centre for Excellence to help drive increased capability.

Pangaea Resources executive director Tim Radburn addressed a group of 50 business and industry people in Katherine on Friday where he went through the report and detailed public benefit to the Territory.

“We’ve invested over $100 million in exploration programs to date and are excited about the prospects of the future,” he said.

“This should be viewed not only as Territory building, but a true nation building project with numerous public benefits, not least of which is supporting lower cost of living outcomes and higher standards of living for all Australians for many generations to come.”

Jemena managing director Paul Adams has endorsed the report. Jemena is building the 622km Northern Gas Pipeline.

“An onshore gas industry in the Territory would allow Jemena to progress plans to expand and extend the pipeline to the east coast,” he said.

“This project would quadruple the size of our NGP workforce to around 4000 across Northern Australia and mean more investment in local contractors and local communities for the longer term.”

Source: Ashley Manicaros, NT News

To register, or for more information, head to aogexpo.com.au

Petroleum Club NT is proud to be a supporting partner of AOG in 2018.

‘The oil and gas industry has gone through a rapid transformation in recent year, and as a result, so has AOG’, says AOG Event Director Bill Hare when asked about the changes the major industry event has seen over recent years. 

‘Of course many elements haven’t changed. We are still the largest industry event in the oil and gas space, providing attendees with the best annual opportunity to network with their peers and see the latest technology and innovations up close, but now the show is so much more, truly representing where the industry is at right now’. 

With now only 10 weeks remaining until Australasian Oil & Gas Exhibition & Conference (AOG) 2018 comes to Perth, anticipation is certainly building for this annual industry meeting place. 

The long running AOG Conference is now a free to attend event with over 100 of the industry’s leading minds speaking in three Forum theatres on the exhibition floor over three days. This year the content is spearheaded by Woodside Energy, government backed National Energy Resources Australia (NERA), Deloitte, Shell, Chevron, the WA Government and over a dozen of the industry’s leading associations, with a focus on delivering cutting edge material during a period of dramatic evolution for the oil and gas sector. 

New in 2018, AOG is collaborating with NERA to deliver two free-to-attend industry initiatives right on the Expo floor. The Nera Technology and Skills Hub will be a platform for 40 innovative businesses to demonstrate and exhibit their technologies in the fields of data and digitisation, automation and robotics, and artificial intelligence and machine learning and will run across the full three days of AOG 2018. 

In addition, AOG will work with NERA on delivering the SME ConnectER program which will connect established SMEs that have innovative products or services and a genuine value proposition to champions from LNG operators and contractors. 

‘New initiatives like this really show how invested the industry is in fostering innovative technologies and concepts. We are pleased to see that AOG participants will have the opportunity to be involved in these new programs from 2018’, said Mr Hare. 

The Exhibition floor, always a key space for networking between industry leaders, will once again feature leading organisations, with nearly 200 exhibitors set to be a part of this year’s event. This year the show floor will feature Woodside Energy, BAE Systems, Dril-Quip, Honeywell and Powerflo, amongst many others.

 Registration to attend AOG is now open, with the free registration including access to the exhibition and conference for the full three day event. 

APPEA Media Release:

The draft final report of the Scientific Inquiry into Hydraulic Fracturing in the Northern Territory has found that any risks associated with onshore gas development and fracking can be managed by effective regulation.

APPEA Director South Australia / Northern Territory Matthew Doman said it was critical the 12-month inquiry be completed to bring certainty to investors, local businesses, Traditional Owners, landholders and all Territorians.

“Importantly, the draft report confirms that shale gas development would have significant economic and employment benefits for the NT,” Mr Doman said.

“The report, released today, has also debunked many of the myths spread by activists opposed to onshore gas development.

“Justice Pepper’s draft report echoes the conclusion reached by numerous other scientific inquiries and reviews that any risks associated with hydraulic fracturing can be minimised or eliminated with proper regulation.

“The report includes 120 recommendations which will need to be considered in detail.

"Any regulatory reforms must be evidence based, workable and cost-effective.

“The industry supports robust, effective and efficient regulation, and will consider whether the report’s recommendations are appropriate to achieve this.

“In the meantime, it is crucial the report be finalised as quickly as possible so that the Territory Government can make decisions about the industry’s future. Uncertainty will remain until a new regulatory regime is confirmed.”

“Gas companies stand ready to invest billions of dollars in new projects in the Territory if the industry is allowed to resume exploration activity.

“There is no reason the Territory cannot manage the safe, sustainable development of its considerable natural gas resources.”

APPEA Media contact: Kieran Murphy – 0408 151 922 – kmurphy@appea.com.au

Source: EnergyNewsBulletin

SANTOS has confirmed that it quietly knocked back an $11 billion takeover bid at $4.55/share from private equity-backed Harbour Energy on August 14 believing it was too cheap and it wasn’t sure about the sources of the funds.

Santos swiftly moved to say it was not currently engaged in discussions with, and had not receive a current proposal from, Harbour Energy after Fairfax reported this morning that former Shell CEO hopeful Linda Cook had approached the Adelaide oiler's board with an invitation to support a takeover from her private equity-backed Harbour. 

Santos said Harbour offered a confidential, non-binding conditional and indicative proposal to acquire all the Gladstone LNG operator's shares by way of a scheme of arrangement in August. 

"The board rejected the approach on the basis that the indicative price [of $4.55/share] was inadequate and the sources of funds were uncertain," Santos said this morning. 

"Santos receives a range of proposals from time to time and is at all times in compliance with its continuous disclosure obligations."

Read more here.

Source AFR

Woodside Petroleum chairman Michael Chaney has declared "the end of an era" as the oil and gas player emerged as a fully independent company for the first time in more than 30 years thanks to a $3.5 billion sellout by Royal Dutch Shell.

The outright sale of Shell's 13.28 per cent interest – which was upgraded in size only hours after an initial agreement after Monday's market close to sell 64 per cent of the holding – leaves Woodside without a stake that could block a full takeover.

The move was sudden but not unexpected, given the oil major – which had its own $10 billion bid for control of Woodside blocked under the Howard government in 2001 – had been gradually selling down since 2010. Shell had made it clear a full withdrawal was on the cards.

Mr Chaney described Shell's exit as "a natural evolution" given the development of Woodside's expertise since Shell first invested alongside its North West Shelf investment in the mid-1980s, and Shell's $US30 billion target for divestments of non-core assets in 2016-18.

But he acknowledged the path is more open now to potential takeover action.

"It's a possibility; whether it's a probability is another question," he said.

"Woodside stands on its own merits and I think for the board and management we just have to make sure that it's fairly valued in the market."

Investors said they didn't expect any impact on Woodside's strategy.

"Management has always steered Woodside as an independent company and we expect that to continue even after the sell-down," said Suhas Nayak at Allan Gray.

As reported in Street Talk, the shares were priced at $31.10 each, a 3.5 per cent discount to Monday's close in a block trade managed by UBS and Morgan Stanley. The timing took advantage of a circa 15 per cent surge in Woodside's stock price since early October on rising crude prices.

Chief executive Peter Coleman said the scaling up of the sale was positive on two fronts, showing strong support for the stock even at the "very tight discount", and eliminating uncertainty that would have lingered had Shell retained shares.

"There's been a perception of an overhang in the market since I joined Woodside," Mr Coleman said. "This takes the uncertainty and speculation away every time we report."

He said the share sale had been roughly evenly split across Australia, Asia and the UK investors, and was oversubscribed before the US market opened. The sale should spur further buying in coming weeks as Woodside's weighting in indices would increase.

Read more: http://www.afr.com/business/energy/oil/woodside-petroleum-to-stand-alone-after-shells-35b-exit-20171113-gzkphv#ixzz4yvixxyLI 
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Perth, Australia: The INPEX–operated Ichthys LNG Project is a step closer to becoming the world’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant to use combined cycle technology, having successfully initiated the start-up of its gas turbine generators at its onshore power plant near Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. 

The milestone is a significant step towards power generation at the Project’s onshore combined cycle power plant (CCPP). Ichthys Project Managing Director, Mr Louis Bon paid tribute to the ongoing focus of the team working on the delivery of the power plant. 

“Initiating the safe start-up of the gas turbine generators (GTG) illustrates the strong commitment of the onshore team to overcome challenges and achieve our targets,” Mr Bon announced. 

“The combined cycle power plant uses gas and steam turbines together to produce up to 50 per cent more electricity from the same amount of fuel compared with a traditional simple-cycle plant,” he advised. 

The waste heat from the gas turbines will be used to create steam for the nearby steam turbine system, which generates extra power. Power and Water Corporation in the Northern Territory provided the initial gas to fuel the GTG start-up process. 

Ultimately powered by natural gas from the Ichthys Field, the CCPP will use a mix of five gas and three steam turbine generators to supply all the electricity requirements for onshore processing of LNG. 

The power plant has capacity for up to 490 megawatts of electricity, which allows LNG processing trains to cool and liquefy natural gas. 

Read the full media release here.

The Northern Territory is unlikely to see any significant investment in onshore gas projects next year following a decision by the independent inquiry into hydraulic fracturing to delay its final report by three months.

APPEA NT Director Matthew Doman said the gas industry was surprised and disappointed by yesterday’s announcement that the Pepper Inquiry’s final report would not be completed until March.

“What was supposed to be a 12-month inquiry is now entering its second year,” Mr Doman said.

“The final report was promised by the end of this year. We now won’t see it until at least March next year. Even if the fracking moratorium is lifted after that, it is very hard to see any significant investment occurring in 2018.

“That means another year of lost opportunity for traditional owners and local businesses who stand to benefit as soon as this unnecessary moratorium ends.

“These further delays are damaging to the NT’s economic interests.

“It must be remembered that we have already had one independent inquiry into fracking in the NT which took nine months to conclude that any risks could be safely managed through robust regulation.

“Numerous other inquiries here in Australia and overseas have reached the same conclusion – fracking is safe when properly regulated.”

Media Contact:

Kieran Murphy
Mobile: 0408 151 922
Email: kmurphy@appea.com.au

Diversified Communications, the organiser of the 2018 Australasian Oil & Gas Exhibition & Conference (AOG 2018), is pleased to announce that registrations for Australia’s largest oil and gas industry event are now open.

With strong support from government and industry groups from around the globe and Principal Sponsors Woodside Energy, National Energy Resources Australia (NERA), the City of Perth and the Western Australian Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation, Diversified is anticipating another world class event.

The three-day AOG 2018 gathering will be staged for the 37th time from the 14th to the 16th of March, almost a month later than normal, to provide for a smoother fit within the international oil and gas industry event calendar.

AOG 2018 will again feature a series of “free-to-attend” Industry Forums over the three days covering the topics of Collaboration, Subsea, and Knowledge, which will be staged on the Exhibition floor.

The 2018 event will also feature a full program of networking events that will fit the needs of all attendees.

AOG 2018 Event Director, Bill Hare, said with the Exhibition and Conference just over five months away, there was a strong “buzz” of anticipation building.

“We again expect to have the participation of large government and industry groups from the leading oil and gas producing countries participating in the exhibition, while the interest in providing content for our Industry Forums has been tremendous,” Mr Hare said.

For more information please go to: https://aogexpo.com.au/

The Scientific Inquiry into Hydraulic Fracturing in the Northern Territory (Inquiry) has released ACIL Allen Consulting Pty Ltd’s (ACIL Allen) independent economic impact assessment of a potential onshore unconventional shale gas industry in the Northern Territory (NT), The Economic Impacts of a Potential Shale Gas Development in the Northern Territory (report).

The report focuses on the potential direct and indirect economic benefits, impacts and risks of onshore shale gas development in the NT under the current regulatory regime, if the Northern Territory Government were to lift the moratorium.

The report consists of five scenarios over a 25-year time frame, namely:  

1. Baseline: the moratorium remains and nothing changes.
2. Shale calm: the moratorium is lifted, but only exploration and appraisal activity occur for a period of three years and development is found to be not commercially viable.  This requires two well pads and 16 wells to be built in the 2019 financial year with market testing to take place in 2020.
3.Shale breeze: the moratorium is lifted, exploration and appraisal activity occurs, and a small scale development 100 Terajoules per day (TJ/day) takes place resulting in 13 pads and 103 wells.
4. Shale wind: the moratorium is lifted and a moderate scale (400TJ/day) development occurs, with 34 pads and 267 wells.
5. Shale Gale: the moratorium is lifted and a larger scale (1000TJ/day) development occurs, with 84 pads and 670 wells.

To download the full report go to: NT Government Fracking Inquiry website

Shale gas development in the Northern Territory would deliver new jobs, local contracts and increased government revenue, an independent economic analysis has confirmed.

The report by ACIL Allen Consulting Services was commissioned by the Scientific Inquiry into Hydraulic Fracturing of Onshore Unconventional Reservoirs in the Northern Territory.

The analysis finds that shale gas development could create more than 500 new jobs sustained over 25 years, boost the NT economy by $5.8 billion and generate up to $3.7 billion in taxes and royalties for the Territory over the same period.

APPEA NT Director Matthew Doman the report was further evidence that the Territory stood to benefit significantly by lifting its moratorium on shale gas.

“The ACIL Allen analysis is a very conservative model which is at odds with the demonstrated experience of the gas industry in other states and uses smaller development scenarios than the industry believes are likely,” Mr Doman said.

“For example, initial developments envisaged by just three companies could exceed all of the gas production modelled in this report.

“As well, earlier economic modelling has shown the economic benefits would be even greater for the NT if shale gas was developed for export as well as domestic use.

“Regardless, the ACIL Allen report shows there will be more jobs, more revenues and a stronger economy if the Territory Government lifted its moratorium on hydraulic fracturing.”

Mr Doman said the ACIL Allen report also highlighted the gas industry’s very small environmental footprint with its largest development scenario suggesting land use covering less than 500 square kilometers, or less than 0.03 per cent of the Territory land mass.

“Evidence to this and numerous other inquiries and decades of practical experience clearly shows that hydraulic fracturing is safe when properly regulated,” Mr Doman said.

“Until exploration is allowed, we cannot be certain of the size and scale of the development that is most likely, and the benefits that will flow to Territorians.

“It’s vital that that Justice Pepper concludes her inquiry and that the Territory Government lift its moratorium.”

 

Media contact: Kieran Murphy – 0408 151 922 – kmurphy@appea.com.au