Lots of news last week about gas with a community declaration and a traditional owner statement released, a senate inquiry, Woodside AGM disruption and a Beetaloo ramp-up.
NSW gas and pipelines
The Breeza Declaration calls on the NSW Government to withdraw support for Santos’s Narrabri Gas Project and its associated pipelines due to the risks to prime agricultural land, precious groundwater and Gomeroi cultural heritage.
Gomeroi Traditional Owners, the NSW Farmers Association, the Country Women’s Association of NSW, Unions NSW and Lock the Gate Alliance gathered at Breeza on Gomeroi country on the Liverpool Plains to issue the joint declaration in March 2026.
The Statement from Gomeroi People was released at the same time to outline their perspective as traditional custodians on why they strongly oppose coal seam gas being developed on their Country. Their statement has the full support of the signatories to the Breeza Declaration.
Sydney Knitting Nannas and Friends have endorsed both the Breeza Declaration and the Statement from Gomeroi People.
Organisations which support the statements can endorse them on Lock the Gate’s website to add weight to the call to protect land, water and future generations from coal seam gas in north-west NSW.
Gas senate enquiry
The Select Committee on the Taxation of Gas Resources has heard from advocates who want the government to make gas companies pay more tax on gas exports. The gas export industry damages our environment and climate, but they pay little tax and get a lot of our gas for free. Australian taxpayers are picking up the tab for climate related damage from extreme weather events, while gas corporations make super profits.
The government can choose to tax their huge profits in the May budget, which would allow them to improve desperately needed community services and provide more help for people struggling to make ends meet.
The gas companies have had their say at the hearings too and have funded an advertising blitz to counterbalance the increasing public support for a tax. Labor MP, Ed Husic, urged the gas industry not to “spend millions defending the indefensible”.
A campaign by the Australia Institute has pointed out that Australians pay more in beer tax – and far more in HECS repayments – than gas companies contribute through the petroleum resources rent tax (PRRT).
The options for the government include
- replacing PRRT with a 25% levy on gas export revenue
- increasing the PRRT
- imposing a windfall profit tax.
Dr Ken Henry, a former Treasury secretary and author of a prominent tax review, said “Just do it. In the national interest, just do it and stop the crap that the Australian public have put up with for decades now in respect of the taxation of Australia’s finite natural resources.” (The Point)
We aren’t getting our hopes up that the Albanese government will change the tax in the budget on 12 May, in spite of the wide public support for reform. Will the PM once again fall for the industry’s claims that they pay enough tax? His recent statements following meetings with gas importing countries in which he pledged reliable access to Australia’s liquified natural gas in exchange for fuel supplies suggest he’ll allow the gas rip off to continue.
The public hearings are over. The committee reporting date is 7 May and the Federal Budget will be handed down on 12 May.
References
The Guardian video of Konrad Benjamin from Punters Politics and Richard Denniss from the Australia Institute at the Senate inquiry into taxing gas.
Resources companies fight gas tax push at Senate Inquiry (ABC News)
Gas companies spending millions on Australian advertising blitz to fight export tax, inquiry told (The Guardian)
Labor under internal pressure on gas tax as influencer says government ‘stopped working for the punters’ (The Guardian)
Anthony Albanese accused of ‘caving to gas companies’ as Labor set to reject new export tax (The Guardian)
WA Woodside AGM DISRUPTED
For the fourth year in a row, campaigners disrupted the Woodside AGM in Perth. Members of Disrupt Burrup Hub called out to the CEO, Liz Westcott, and the board about their destructive Burrup Hub gas project.
The protesters called on Australia’s biggest oil and gas company to accept accountability for the destruction they are causing to the sacred rock art at Murujuga. “At Woodside it is profit before planet”.
One protester breached the barricades to jump onto the stage yelling “How dare you?”, before being tackled and removed. Four Disrupt Burrup Hub campaigners were escorted from the room by security. Some sang while they held up signs “hands off Scott Reef”.
Outside the meeting, several dozen activists held signs with slogans such as ‘Rage against the Woodside machine’ and ‘More gas will cook our planet’.
Liz Westcott used the already debunked industry spin that Woodside’s liquefied natural gas products were assisting global decarbonisation by replacing coal as a fuel source in Asia. “We can nearly halve the emissions by having coal replaced by gas”, she said.
Matt Roberts, executive director of the Conservation Council of WA, disputed that claim, saying gas was in fact replacing renewables.
Woodside executives say that a 25% export tax would kill the company’s $37 billion Browse gas project off the coast of Western Australia.
Greens senator, Steph Hodgins-May, pointed out that “If giving Australians a fair return for their own gas makes your project unviable, doesn’t that show that the model is broken and depends on Australians effectively giving away their resources for free.”
Oil and gas giant feels the heat from climate activists (The West Australian)
Beetaloo Sub-basin
The strongest case for development of the McArthur Basin and its Beetaloo Sub-basin in the Northern Territory is domestic, rather than export driven. The federal basin plan explicitly frames Beetaloo as a potential source for households, industry and LNG feedgas.
A major ramp-up in exploration, appraisal and development activity is occurring.
Gas companies invested in the Beetaloo Sub-basin include Tamboran Resouces, Santos Limited, Japanese INPEX (with gas acreage operated by Daly Waters Energy), and Beetaloo Energy Australia, formerly known as Empire Energy.
Beetaloo Energy Australia has raised $66.3 million in capital and has an infrastructure facility with Macquarie Bank to $45M.
Beetaloo has earmarked over $10M for its Territory Sands project. A local, dedicated frac sand supply will cut operational costs.
Sign the petition to the Federal government to stop the expansion of the Middle Arm gas hub in Darwin where gas from Beetaloo is planned to be processed and exported. The Federal Labor Government has earmarked $1.9 billion of public money to build the shared infrastructure for the Middle Arm Precinct.
References
Beetaloo Energy locks in $66.3M to fast-track to first NT gas (The West Australian)
Macquarie Group takes 6.6% stake in Beetaloo Energy Australia (Filing Reader)
Reasons for hope
Public awareness about the lack of tax the gas industry pays and the amount of subsidies they receive has grown following some great advocacy by independent civil society groups. The budget reforms may be scuppered this time by oil shortages caused by the wars in the Middle East.
However, those same shortages have made energy security a priority for governments and people. To be independent from ongoing and future global upheavals, sales have increased in electric vehicles and renewable energy.
The first Conference on transitioning away from fossil fuels is being held in Santa Marta, Colombia from 24 – 29 April. The annual United Nations Climate Change Conferences, known as COPs, have not been able to get a consensus to phase out fossil fuels because some countries do not want to tackle the issue.
So, at the last COP in Brazil, Colombia and the Netherlands brought together 80 countries, including Australia, to sign a declaration to phase out fossil fuels. Since then, they have been bringing together people with knowledge and skills to contribute ideas with a focus on actions and solutions. Contributions in writing and from virtual dialogues are arranged in different chapters. See contributions to each chapter here. More news on this next week.
References
“Solar surge:” China smashes PV export records as energy crisis fast-tracks fossil fuel exodus (Renew Economy)
The first global conference on phasing out fossil fuels, explained (Climate Council)
Forthcoming Events