AUSTRALIAN today:
'Santos chief backs Darwin as next big thing for LNG
A new round of Australian LNG projects could be looming as Asian demand grows, with Santos chief Kevin Gallagher declaring an expansion study on the Darwin LNG plant has made it the nation’s best chance for a new LNG production train. The comments come less than a week after Woodside Petroleum chief Peter Coleman embarked on an equity raising to buy oil giant ExxonMobil out of the big offshore Scarborough field and progress plans to develop it through an $US8 billion ($10.2bn) expansion of the Pluto field at Karratha.
“When you look at all of the gas off northern Australia, I think it’s the only realistic expansion case for an LNG facility in Australia,” Mr Gallagher said of the potential to expand the 12-year old Darwin LNG plant. “It’s something we would be keen to explore and push with our joint venture partners.”
Santos owns a 12 per cent stake of Darwin LNG, which is also studying a $5bn development of the offshore Caldita-Baross field to backfill the plant when reserves from its currents fields run low. Mr Gallagher said a feasibility study into expanding Darwin LNG using Northern Australia’s offshore fields, announced by the Northern Territory government and Darwin LNG operator ConocoPhillips , was now complete. He would not give details but said the study had been positive.
The growing talk of LNG expansions comes as Chinese demand outpaces expectations.......'
(20min delay)