Australia's renewable energy shift to be powered by gas

Sydney Morning Herald

6 days ago

Natural gas will play a bigger role in Australia's shift to cleaner energy as Labor advances plans for new gas-import terminals and industry braces for new rules to force gas exporters to reserve more supplies of the fossil fuel for domestic use.
Two controversial decisions this week enraged environmental campaigners who fear increasing gas supplies will make it harder to tackle global warming, but underscored the belief within state and federal governments that more gas is needed to power homes and support renewables when the wind is not blowing and the sun is not shining.
Following a four-year delay, Victoria on Thursday finally gave the provisional green light for fuel supplier Viva Energy to build a floating gas-import terminal at the site of its Geelong oil refinery, which aims to bring in shipments of liquified natural gas from Queensland, Western Australia or overseas for use in the local network.
The ruling came a day after the Albanese government signed off on a four-decade extension of the North West Shelf gas project on Western Australia's Burrup Peninsula. Federal Resources Minister Madeleine King, meanwhile, is reviewing controls on Queensland's LNG industry to ensure they boost gas supplies for the eastern seaboard.
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The federal government is looking for ways to head off the worsening threat of gas shortfalls emerging in Victoria and NSW later this decade, as ageing gas fields in the Bass Strait that have long supplied the local market rapidly deplete, with few projects to replace them.
Gas industry insiders believe the government could pass reforms to tighten controls on Queensland's three LNG joint ventures through parliament by the end of the year, where it only needs support of either the Greens or the opposition, both of which have previously endorsed domestic gas reservation.
A spokesperson for the minister told this masthead that the government would guarantee more gas supply for the eastern seaboard.
'The government will progress the planned review of gas market frameworks and the role of market bodies to ensure more gas is made available for Australians,' they said.