Latest news with #MegONeill
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Millionaire boss takes a swipe at young Aussies - as she exposes a major double standard
The boss of mining giant Woodside has slammed young Australians, claiming they are hypocrites because they oppose fossil fuel projects but embrace Shein and Temu. Woodside CEO Meg O'Neill said the retailers were wildly popular with Gen Z 'without any sort of recognition of the energy and carbon impact of their actions' when she spoke at the Australian Energy Producers Conference in Brisbane this week. Woodside made headlines on Wednesday when it was given the green light by the federal government to keep operating until the 2070s a massive gas processing plant in the Karratha region of WA as part of its North West Shelf project. 'Most people hit a switch and expect the lights to come on,' Ms O'Neill said. 'It's been a fascinating journey to watch the discussion, particularly amongst young people who have this very ideological, almost zealous view of, you know, fossil fuels bad, renewables good. 'They are happily plugging in their devices and ordering things from Shein and Temu having, you know, one little thing shipped to their house without any sort of recognition of the energy and carbon impact of their actions. 'So that human impact and the consumer's role in driving energy demand and emissions absolutely is a missing space in the conversation.' Ms O'Neill earned $7.45 million in reported pay in 2023 as the CEO of Woodside. New Greens leader Larissa Waters said it was 'laughable' the CEO of a fossil fuel company was pointing the finger at young people over global warming. 'To claim with a straight face that the climate crisis is the fault of young people shopping online for goods they can afford in a cost-of-living crisis - you can't be the head of a massive dirty gas company and point the finger at other people about the climate crisis,' Waters told ABC. 'We've seen this time and time again – when fossil fuel companies feel threatened, they try to shift the blame back onto the individual and distract us from the fact that they have the power to end the climate crisis.' Woodside's gas - most of which is exported overseas - produced 74m tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions in 2024, according to company documents. Shein - which was founded in China in 2008 and has grown to become the largest fashion retailer in the world - emitted 16.7m tonnes of carbon dioxide in 2023 via manufacturing, online business and shipping, according to its sustainability report. Yale Climate Connections, associated with Yale University, noted this is on par with the annual emissions from four coal power plants. Fellow Chinese online retailer Temu doesn't publicly disclose its emissions output but is one of the major players in the fast fashion industry which is the second largest industrial polluter on the planet, contributing about 10 per cent of global emissions. Both companies use economies of scale and exploit the 'de minimise' tax loophole -where small shipments avoid tariffs - to send millions of packages to consumers across the globe each day at incredibly cheap prices. While Woodside scored a win with its lease extension in Karratha it still has to accept conditions around heritage and air quality at the project on WA's Burrup Peninsula, home to ancient rock art, before the approval is made official. But after years of delay, the decision by new environment minister and Queensland senator Murray Watt represents an endorsement of the sector by the Labor government. Ms O'Neill said the conversation in Australia had evolved to recognise the role of gas in smoothing out the energy transition. 'The renewables rollout is not going as fast as had initially been anticipated, and we need to make sure that we're tackling those cost-of-living pressures that were such an important issue at the most recent election,' she told reporters. 'Increased supply of natural gas is part of the solution to help bring those power prices down.' Saul Kavonic, an energy expert with advisory firm MST Marquee, said there was hope within the gas industry that the poor performance of the Greens in the election would allow the government to take a more investment-friendly approach. 'But the truth is, the industry is waiting to see if actions follow words,' Mr Kavonic told Sky News. 'Overall, the investment landscape in Australia is still seen as quite challenging, particularly compared to alternatives that investors can invest in, places like Texas and Louisiana in the United States.' Replacing former environment minister Tanya Plibersek, who was vulnerable to the Greens in her inner-city Sydney electorate, with Senator Watt had been a 'massive improvement for the approvals landscape'. Legal challenges could still jeopardise the project, which Woodside says contributes more than 2000 direct jobs and has paid more than $40 billion in taxes over the past four decades. Mardathoonera woman Raelene Cooper launched a last-minute legal bid to stop the project in the Federal Court, and indicated she would continue her fight following Senator Watt's decision. It came just hours after the United Nations said industrial development at Karratha threatened nearby Aboriginal rock art, likely sinking Australia's attempts to secure heritage listing for the carvings if the extension goes ahead. Ms O'Neill said Woodside had worked closely with traditional custodians for more than 40 years. 'Whilst we haven't always gotten it right, we have very strong working relationships now, and we support the World Heritage listing, and we believe industry and heritage can coexist,' she said. The existing gas fields that feed the plant will run out in the 2030s, so Woodside is hoping to tap into the nearby Browse Basin, which could provide Karratha with decades more gas through an undersea pipeline. Ms O'Neill said the North West Shelf extension would still be worth it without Browse, because it also processes gas from other shippers, but Browse would be particularly important for domestic energy security beyond the 2030s. 'So we will continue to work with the states, the EPA and the Commonwealth department of environment on those Browse approvals,' she said. But the massive gas field has also become a target for environmental activists, who claim it would produce 1.6 gigatons of carbon emissions over its 50 year project life. Australian Conservation Foundation CEO Kelly O'Shanassy vowed to keep fighting the proposal. 'ACF and many others will continue to vigorously oppose the expansion of the gas industry, including the exploitation of the Browse climate bomb gas field at Scott Reef,' she said. Independent MP Kate Chaney, who represents the WA seat of Curtin, said she had heard from her constituents on the Woodside project more than on any other issue. 'People are deeply concerned about the North West Shelf going ahead and gas expansion. It's overly simplistic to think Western Australia has one view,' she told ABC TV. 'There are people who work in the gas industry who recognise we need to have a transition, there's so much potential for WA through renewables and green industry, and we need to shift our focus to that.'
ABC News
3 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
Gas or hot air? Can Woodside lower energy prices and save the planet?
If it goes to full term, Australia's biggest ever resource project will pass the ton. This week, Woodside Petroleum was given the federal government green light to extend the North West Shelf venture — a gas project spawned in 1963 — by a further 40 years, taking it through to 2070. The environmental approval process for the extension, however, has taken on a life of its own. After more than seven years of negotiations and appeals, annoyed Woodside officials have become increasingly vocal in their criticisms of the ongoing delays. But on Wednesday, Woodside supremo Meg O'Neill, while her usual curt self, by her own admission was "delighted" by the proposed approval from the newly minted environment minister, Murray Watt. The project would, she said, provide the state with energy security, shore up domestic supply, keep international customers on a leash, aid the energy transition and help alleviate cost of living pressures. "We need to manage the pace of the energy transition," she told reporters at the post announcement press conference. She then homed in on the recent federal election campaign and the focus on living costs and particularly exorbitant energy costs. "Natural gas and the increased supply of natural gas is part of the solution to help bring those power prices down," she argued. Woodside has just over a week to agree to the conditions laid down by the federal government. But green groups are apoplectic, and all parties are bracing for legal appeals. But there are wider concerns, too. It's a well-worn argument from industry players. But it raises a couple of issues. Gas was always seen as a transition fuel, a stopgap measure to generate power during peak times as we weaned ourselves off coal during the renewable energy rollout. The Albanese government last year acknowledged the delays in building adequate renewable supplies and the extended role that gas will need to play as a result. But are we contemplating a delay that is likely to extend another 45 years? That's a timeline that doesn't quite gel with net zero targets by 2050. And what of the claims that all this extra gas will assist in reducing electricity prices? Australia already is one of the world's biggest gas producers and exporters. Why would even more gas production make any difference to local electricity prices? That's a point Josh Runciman, the lead analyst for Australian gas at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, has questioned. "The amount of gas that will actually flow from the North West Shelf extension into the domestic market is a key question here," he told ABC's The Business. Western Australia is the only state or territory to demand gas producers put aside a percentage of production for domestic use. But even that has its shortcomings. "Woodside is currently behind on its domestic reservation commitments," he said. "It's meant to supply 15 per cent of reserves. They're nowhere near that." The uproar over soaring energy costs mostly relate to the east coast dominated National Energy Market after gas exporters ran the system dry, sending electricity prices soaring. Western Australia, however, is neither connected to the National Electricity Market nor to the east coast network of gas pipelines, so extra production from the North West Shelf is unlikely to have any impact on electricity for most of the country. When it comes to emissions, gas might be better than coal but it's still a dirty fuel. It is the lesser of two evils. Much of Woodside's future production — the gas expected to continue providing feedstock for its giant Karratha plant — is expected to come from a new offshore development well to the north of the North West Shelf and the huge Pilbara based processing plant. Known as Browse, it too has been decades in the making. But there are technical issues with the gas in this field, with a high percentage of carbon dioxide. To extract that, and to remain in line with emissions commitments, it will need to be net zero from day one of its production. That will require an elaborate carbon capture and storage program that, ultimately, may limit the economic viability of the field. Already, there are concerns of a global glut of the energy source with planned major lifts in output from the United States, Canada, the Middle East and now Australia. Russia, meanwhile, which has the world's biggest gas fields, has been forced to divert supplies to China on the cheap after its invasion of Ukraine. Shikha Chaturvedi, the head of JP Morgan's global natural gas strategy, sees prices ultimately heading in just one direction. "We see a downward global LNG price trajectory with increased volatility, driven by a structurally oversupplied market," she told clients earlier this year. So, why would Woodside embark upon such a huge project? Mr Runciman isn't surprised. "When you look at declining markets, generally, companies will compete until it's last man standing and I suspect Woodside's move is part of that." Oil giants and tax revenue often are considered mutually exclusive terms, at least in Australia. While Norway and Qatar net huge sums annually, Australia has struggled to bring multi-national resource giants to heel, even with a Petroleum Resources Rent Tax. The Australian Tax Office has fought mammoth court battles against the likes of Chevron and ExxonMobil over unpaid tax. It's a delicate issue for Woodside, which this week noted: "Over four decades, the project has paid more than $40 billion in royalties and excise." While royalties are a cost of doing business, they are not a tax. They are payments for the right to exploit a resource owned by the state. That aside, Woodside is, however, one of the country's biggest taxpayers, forking out $814 million last year, $653 million the year before and $2.9 billion in 2022. But its payments under the PRRT scheme indicate the shortcomings of the regime. While it paid $890 million in PRRT in 2023, it last year received a $91 million benefit and a $313 million benefit in 2022. When the world began stepping back from hydrocarbons and petrochemicals as governments embraced zero emissions pledges, Woodside stepped forward. Two years ago, it took control of BHP's massive petroleum business, based mostly in the Gulf of Mexico. That ethos still pervades Woodside's ethos as it this week championed the North West Shelf expansion with the company arguing that without gas, we would need more coal. That's an idea that Mr Runciman rejects. It is renewables replacing coal, not gas, he said. "A sustained effort to focus on renewables would complement gas, not lead to additional coal." The question is whether we'll still be transitioning in 2070.
ABC News
3 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
Woodside celebrates but environmentalists devastated
Sabra Lane: The new Federal Environment Minister, Murray Watt, has given preliminary approval to extend Woodside Energy's northwest shelf operations by 40 years. Woodside's welcomed it as delivering certainty. It now has 10 days to respond to the strict conditions the Minister's applied to the liquid natural gas plant. Indigenous custodians and environmentalists, though, are devastated by the decision. Annie Guest reports. Annie Guest: Woodside Energy has spent seven years securing an extension beyond 2030 and CEO Meg O'Neill has welcomed the green light. Meg O'Neill: I'm really delighted that we have received the Minister's proposed approval for the northwest shelf life extension. This decision has been a long time in the coming. Annie Guest: The $34 billion northwest shelf project extracts gas off the Pilbara coast and processes it at an onshore plant covering 200 hectares not far from Aboriginal rock art on the Burrup Peninsula. The approval came shortly after UNESCO flagged it would reject a bid for World Heritage listing for the Burrup Peninsula, citing concerns about emissions degrading the Aboriginal rock carvings. Ngarluma Yinjibarndi woman, Kaylene Daniel, is a traditional custodian. Kaylene Daniel: I'm feeling sad. Everything that we've all been going through, my family, the five language groups, it has been a long fight for us to do this. World Heritage listing is what we want and need. We don't need this extension. We don't want this, please. Annie Guest: The Mayor of Karratha, Daniel Scott, is also concerned about World Heritage listing for the rock art and implications for tourism. But with 300 of Woodside's employees living locally, he says there's also an upside. Daniel Scott: It's good news on one front. It's security for the people here that are directly employed by Woodside and the businesses that are directly impacted and have their services and income from Woodside. Annie Guest: But environmentalists describe extending the gas operation as terrible for marine life and reefs and disastrous for the climate. WA farmer Simon Wallwork is the chair of AgZero 2030. Simon Wallwork: Yeah, I'm really disappointed regarding this decision. It's the cost to agriculture hasn't been factored in. It's a very large amount of greenhouse gas emissions and that will have a cost on agriculture, particularly in the South West Land Division of Western Australia, where we've already lost significant rainfall and we're experiencing higher temperatures. Annie Guest: Amid concerns about electricity price rises and warnings of domestic shortfalls, Woodside is under pressure to sell 15 per cent of gas locally. Sabra Lane: Annie Guest and Angus Randall reporting there.
News.com.au
4 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
LNG will be ‘essential' in helping tackle the global challenge of climate change
Woodside Chief Executive Meg O'Neill says she is 'delighted' with the government's decision to extend the life of the North West Shelf gas project until 2070. Ms O'Neill emphasised the importance of energy security and potential expansion. She outlines steps for complying with government-set environmental conditions and discusses strategies for managing carbon emissions while ensuring a reliable LNG supply. 'I am delighted with the Minister's proposed decision; I am delighted for our employees, the men and women who keep gas flowing,' Ms O'Neill told Sky News business reporter Ed Boyd. 'LNG has an essential role to play in helping the global challenge of climate change.'
The Guardian
4 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
The Woodside boss's attacks on my generation are blatant scapegoating – and we see straight through them
You're likely familiar with the term 'carbon footprint', which measures an individual's environmental impact. The concept communicates to consumers that we play a significant role in limiting the impacts of climate change through small daily personal choices. The carbon footprint has merit, encouraging the use of keep cups, the offsetting of emissions for a long-haul flight, improving our recycling habits, saving the planet one Tupperware container at a time. Yes, little things do add up. We have real impact. When you realise this globally applied term was coined by an advertising firm working for British Petroleum, the landing changes. The firm Ogilvy & Mather created the carbon footprint to deflect from the climate impact of fossil fuel giants and instead place members of the public under the microscope. If you shame a person's habits, you create division and distraction among the class of people threatening to take community action against you. It's as sinister as it is genius. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email On Tuesday, Meg O'Neill, the chief executive of Woodside, attacked young Australians for our 'ideological' stand when it comes to the fossil fuel industry. When speaking at the Australian Energy Producers conference, she said: 'It's been a fascinating journey to watch the discussion, particularly among young people who have this very ideological, almost zealous view of, you know, fossil fuels bad, renewables good, that are happily plugging in their devices, ordering things from [online fast-fashion stores] Shein and Temu – having, you know, one little thing shipped to their house without any sort of recognition of the energy and carbon impact of their actions … So that human impact and the consumer's role in driving energy demand and emissions absolutely is a missing space in the conversation.' As a 26-year-old and a member of generation Z, I am proud to say I have never made a purchase from the fast-fashion stores O'Neill mentions. I will also be the first to admit that I am consuming more than I should be and have made purchases from questionable stores in the past. Acknowledging this flaw is important; we should all be striving to make more environmentally friendly choices. However, pointing out this prime example of a straw man argument is the more pressing point. This is the blatant scapegoating of young people while directly destroying our climate. Meg O'Neill, is it easier to blame young people for 'plugging in their devices' than speak to Woodside's spilling of an estimated 16,000 litres of 'hydrocarbons' off Western Australia's north-west coast into the Indian Ocean just weeks ago? Yes, it may be a 'zealous' view that young people hold in wanting to stop your North West Shelf gas project, a potential 'carbon bomb' that would extend gas production until 2070, both exacerbating the climate crisis and risking ancient First Nations art at Murujuga. I would love to hear you explain how an individual buying a bathmat or earrings online compares with the 74m tonnes of CO2 that were emitted due to the sale and burning of Woodside gas last year alone. While O'Neill thinks the 'missing space in the conversation' is the consumer's role in energy demand, I would argue the real silence in the discussion is how fossil fuel giants and the Albanese government justify approving projects that will drastically affect the planet my generation will inherit, and what part of your moral conscience allows you to blame us for it. This relentless attempt to shift responsibility and divide us is no longer viable. We see through the spin, we can cut through the noise. There are many powerful young people advocating for a better world, one which values our planet more than the millions being funnelled into the bank accounts of big oil and gas bosses who would rather we kept quiet. If that is my ideological view, I'm fine with that. Hannah Ferguson is the chief executive of Cheek Media Co.
