Offshore Natural Gas Exploration

Offshore from Victoria, Tasmania, Western Australia and the Northern Territory, thousands of wells have been drilled, producing oil and gas resources for the last 50 years employing more than 50,000 Australians, powering homes and businesses, and underpinning the development of a $67b a year export industry. Yet NSW takes a different approach.

After drilling an exploration well without incident in 2010 in a permit area offshore Newcastle and Sydney known as PEP-11, Perth-based company Asset Energy has been impeded in its ability to secure approval to continue its activity.

H/Advisors APA has worked with Asset Energy to attempt to balance the public discussion and highlight the cost of blocking the development of much-needed resources particularly at time of critical gas shortages and a gas prices surge impacting on manufacturers and consumers.

The challenges are considerable with the debate over coastal gas development a significant issue prior to the 2022 Federal election, where the Liberal Party lost three seaside seats to Teal independents and the Labor Party.