Northern Territory Seeks LNG Boom Without Queensland's Mistakes

The Northern Territory in Australia is seeking to replicate the liquefied natural gas (LNG) boom that occurred in Queensland, but this time without the duplication of infrastructure and overspending. The territory's Beetaloo sub-basin has been surveyed for over 30 years, with commercial volumes of shale gas being shipped out from Tamboran Resources' Shenandoah project just this week. Despite initial skepticism, the Sunshine State now supplies over a third of Australia's LNG exports.

Beetaloo Energy CEO Alex Underwood emphasized that the experience in Queensland was not ideal, as it led to massive overexpenditure on infrastructure. He mentioned that Gladstone in Queensland has three LNG plants, which could have been consolidated into one larger plant with a single pipe. This inefficiency is something Beetaloo developers aim to avoid.

The big pipeline companies in Australia, including Australian Gas Infrastructure Group (AGIG), APA Group, and Jemena, believe there is space for all of them in the Beetaloo region. Underwood stated that the goal is to replicate the LNG industry without duplication, allowing multiple buyers such as LNG plants in Darwin owned by Santos and Inpex.