Australia - · PDF filetralia’s fastest growing ... Given that the French were the...

AustraliaEnergy reportNovember 2010

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North Rankin A Platform, North West Shelf Venture – Courtesy of Woodside

November 2010 Oil & Gas Financial Journal • www.ogfj.com 3November 2010 Oil & Gas Financial Journal • www.ogfj.com 3

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The best view overlooking the energy world these days is from

the land down under. A long time mining giant, the growth of

Australia’s petroleum industry is now adding a preponderant

dimension to its international energy standing. With more than $200 bil-

lion worth of projects to exploit over 400 Tcf of gas, the eyes and resources

of the oil and gas world are being drawn to Australia’s free-market, OECD

environment. Domestic industry and foreign investors, meanwhile, need

only look north to energy hungry Asia for steady long-term demand that

has helped Australia avoid an economic downturn and positioned it, as the

IMF described, at the “forefront of the global recovery.”

4 www.ogfj.com•Oil & Gas Financial JournalNovember 2010

Despite the favorable outlook, 2010 has presented new chal-

lenges to the industry. Fallout from a proposed “super profits”

resources tax spiraled into a mid-year prime minister change and

subsequent federal elections, but still leaves industry yearning for

fiscal certainty; Deepwater Horizon has heightened safety con-

cerns, particularly as liquefied natural gas carries industry further

offshore; and the infrastructure demands of prospective proj-

ects have exposed a looming labor shortage. Australia has the

resources below the ground to grow into an energy powerhouse.

How it surmounts the above ground risks go equally far in deter-

mining its success.

Gas is the biggest game in townWhile a country of Australia’s continental size is no stranger to big

proportions, its plethora of “mega” liquefied natural gas (LNG)

projects planned for the next 10 years are breaking new grounds

for global oil and gas. Geoscience Australia – an entity of the Fed-

eral Department of Resources,

Energy and Tourism (RET) – esti-

mates conventional gas reserves

off western basins to be 164 Tcf

with as much as 250 Tcf of coal

seam gas (CSG) assets in the

eastern states of Queensland and

New South Wales.

Belinda Robinson, chief execu-

tive of the Australian Petroleum

Production & Exploration Asso-

ciation (APPEA) whose member

companies represent 98% of

Australia’s oil and gas, estimates

reserves-to-production to be in

excess of 250 years. “Taking into

account the other energy sources

we have, it is an indisputable

statement to say that we are an

energy superpower,” she asserts.

LNG is forecasted to be Aus-

tralia’s fastest growing energy

export over the next two decades.

Twenty-one years after the first

LNG cargo delivery from Austra-

lia’s flagship Northwest Shelf Ven-

ture (NWSV), there are over $200

billion worth of LNG projects in

the planning phases, with final

investment decision (FID) immi-

nent for many of them. By 2015

Australian LNG exports could

exceed 40 million tons per year

as Chevron’s Gorgon Gas Project

and Woodside Petroleum’s Pluto

Project come onstream. Beyond

2015, up to 10 other projects

could make Australia the world’s

second largest LNG exporter.

Along the way Australia will be

home to cutting edge develop-

ments: the first conversion of

CSG-to-LNG; the first application of floating LNG technology; and

the world’s largest carbon capture and sequestration project.

The proliferation of Australian natural gas projects coincides

with declining levels of domestic crude oil production. Australia’s

oil production has been steadily declining since 2000 leading to a

$16 billion trade deficit in crude oil, refined products, and lique-

fied petroleum gas. Geoscience estimates the deficit could reach

$30 billion by 2015 with net imports of liquid fuels as high as ¾

of consumption by 2030 in the absence of a major new discovery.

“The outlook for oil is not too good,” says Robinson. The oil

reserves-to-consumption ratio is less than 10 years. The upside

is that there is still the prospect of a major new discovery. Only

20% of our sedimentary basins have been explored. But barring a

major discovery, the outlook for oil in Australia is very grim.”

Meanwhile, gas production continues to grow to meet both

domestic and export demand reinforcing its importance to the

energy mix.

Gas reserves and resources

Source: APPEA

AUSTRALIA3P113 + Tcf*

2P61 + Tcf*

2P7 + Tcf

Resourcepotential

12 Tcf

CSGResource potential

250 + Tcf*

Belinda Robinson, Chief Executive, APPEA

Dr. Clinton Foster, Chief of Petroleum and Marine Division, Geoscience Australia

Hon. Martin Ferguson, Minister for Resources and Energy, Minister for Tourism - Federal Government of Australia


The wild and gaseous westGas in Australia is segmented between onshore CSG assets in the

east and predominantly offshore deposits in Western Australia

(WA) and the Northern Territory. While a palpable excitement is

sweeping both markets, the offshore projects out west that are

stimulating innovation and strengthening marine services suggest

that the right time and right place for gas is today in WA.

“Seventy percent of Australia’s oil and gas is off the Western

Australian coast,” says Colin Barnett, the premier of Western Aus-

tralia. “The industry is dominated by WA. Of the three major reser-

voirs off the coast of WA – the Carnarvon, Browse, and Bonaparte

Basins – only the Carnarvon has been relatively explored.”

The offshore oil and gas reserves today in WA have been com-

pared to the same stage of development as the Gulf of Mexico

30 years ago, a comment brought to the premier’s attention on

an April 2010 visit to Texas. Perth, consequently, has drawn ref-

erences as the “mini-Houston” given its landscape of superma-

jors and multinational contractors. “What is happening here is of

world significance,” Barnett adds. “The sizes of the gas fields that

have been and will continue to be discovered are large by interna-

tional standards and certainly large by Gulf of Mexico standards.

The significance of the gas reserves here is their proximity to the

expanding markets of Asia.”

Where to find the majorsAttractive linkages to Asia and a stable political environment have

drawn substantial investment from the world’s major oil and gas

companies. Commitments vary from Shell and Chevron with over

100 years in Australia to GDF Suez and Petrobras, both relative

newcomers. But the message is clear: Australia is a high priority

market for global growth strategies.

Shell, a founding member of the NWSV, projects half of its

global output to come from gas by 2012. “Globally Shell produces

over 18 million tons of LNG per year,” says Ann Pickard, country

chair of Shell in Australia. “By 2020 we will

add another 15 million tons per year, more

than half of which will come from Austra-

lia. Australia is critical in terms of Shell’s

growth in the LNG marketplace.”

Underpinning Shell’s projections are its

25% equity in the Gorgon Gas Project and

a joint venture (JV) with PetroChina which

will acquire Australian junior and CSG rich

Arrow Energy for LNG developments in

Queensland. Shell is also pioneering float-

ing LNG technology through 100% equity

in the Prelude Project and 27% partici-

pation in Sunrise LNG. Prelude is widely

expected to be the first successful dem-

onstration of floating LNG. “Prelude will

open up a whole new ‘game’ in terms of

Hon. Colin Barnett, Premier of Western Australia

Ann Pickard, Country Chair, Shell in Australia

Seiya Ito, Managing Director, Inpex Australia

Jeff Dowling, Oil & Gas Leader Oceania, Ernst & Young

Fig. 1: Historical Australian oil and gas production

Source: APPEA

600

Liquids (oil, condensate, LPG) (mmbls) Gas (sales gas, LNG) (bcf)

800

1000

1200

1400

1600

1800

2000

300

mm

bls

bcf

250

200

150

100

50

0

19931994

19951996

19971998

19992000

20012002

20032004

20052006

20072008

2009

Our mission is a sourceof pride each and every day:responding to today’s needs whileshaping the world of tomorrow.

gdfsuez.com

Throughout the world, the men and women at GDF SUEZ focus their businesses on responsible growth

to take up today’s major energy and environmental challenges: meeting energy needs, fighting against

climate change, ensuring the security of supply for our customers and maximizing the use of resources.

In the Timor Sea off the coast of Australia, we are leading the development of the Bonaparte LNG project

in a partnership with Santos. Our aim: to extract natural gas from three fields, and liquefy it in a floating LNG

plant for ease of storage and transport. Our close collaboration with our Australian partner reflects our

commitment to ensuring a reliable supply of liquefied natural gas to the Asia-Pacific region.

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CarsGdf_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 11:41 AMNovember 2010 Oil & Gas Financial Journal • www.ogfj.com 7

access to stranded gas reserves,” Pickard adds. “It will also be

the first of several FLNG facilities. Our plan is to design one and

build many.”

Given that the French were the original pioneers of the LNG

trade launching the first shipment from Algiers to Britain in 1964, it

is only fitting that GDF Suez, the industry giant in integrated LNG

projects, has invested in offshore gas’s hottest market. In January

2010 GDF Suez finalized an agreement to purchase a 60% share in

three gas fields in the Bonaparte Basin. Already present in Austra-

lia through the waste and water businesses, the Bonaparte LNG JV

with Santos, owner of the fields’ remaining 40%, represents GDF

Suez’s first move into the Australian energy sector.

“Bonaparte LNG is a strategic project for us,” say Jean-François

Letellier, managing director of GDF Suez Bonaparte. “It adds a

major component to the natural gas value chain of GDF Suez while

reinforcing our position as a world leader in LNG.”

Bonaparte LNG is an integrated project whose purpose is to

build a floating liquefaction plant with 2 million tons per annum

capacity in the Timor Sea. Final investment decision is expected

by 2014. “We consider integrated projects as key to accessing

competitive LNG resources,” Letellier adds. “Australia provides

the opportunity to have an LNG

project with exploration, produc-

tion, liquefaction, shipping, and

marketing all together. LNG is

becoming a global market and an

LNG leader such as GDF Suez has

to be present in the Asia-Pacific

market.”

While the French pioneered

the LNG trade, many would argue

that LNG today is very much an

Asian industry in both production

and consumption. Limited natural resource endowments have

made Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan big customers of Pacific

Basin LNG. China and India, of course, are growing consum-

ers. Japan in particular – only 16% energy self-sufficient and the

world’s largest LNG importer – has a strong presence in Austra-

lia to address critical energy security needs. Osaka Gas, Tokyo

Gas, and Kansai Electric all hold minority interests and long-term

purchase agreements in Australian LNG projects. Japan Australia

LNG Pty Ltd (MIMI) is a founding partner of the NWSV.

Jean-François Letellier, General Manager, GDF SUEZ Bonaparte


In the right place at the right time

www.metgasco.com.au

CarsMet_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 11:06 AM

The face of Japan in upstream Australia, however, is INPEX.

In the late 1980s INPEX targeted Australia as the next stop in its

international diversification. A joint exploration block with BHP

Billiton yielded ten years of successful oil production allowing for

more aggressive growth in Australia. The result was WA-285-P.

Better known as the Ichthys field, it is one of Australia’s largest gas

fields with an estimated 12.6 TcF of gas and an expected operat-

ing life in excess of 40 years. Ichthys’s 527 million barrels of con-

densate makes it the largest petroleum liquids discovery in Austra-

lia since 1966. Joint venturing with Total to glean LNG expertise,

the ambitious field development plans call for one of the world’s

largest offshore central processing facilities and an 885km pipeline

to an LNG facility in the Northern Territory city of Darwin.

Ichthys will engender unprecedented engineering challenges

as well as usher in what managing director Seiya Ito describes a

“new beginning” for INPEX in Australia. “We have been success-

ful as an exploration operator. It is now time for us to shift into a

developing operator and ultimately a production operator. Ich-

thys is an asset that we will grow with towards these new stages

of the company.”

The new paradigm for Australian energyUnequivocally, the project that brings Australia to center stage

is Gorgon LNG, operated by Chevron with Shell and ExxonMobil

holding 25% interests, respectively. Superlatives abound for the

$43 billion resource investment, the single largest in Australia’s his-

tory. Gorgon is estimated to produce 15 million tons of LNG per

year – 8% of current global capacity – every year over its projected

40 year lifespan. “One project; 8% of global capacity. By any mea-

sure, that’s huge,” emphasized Geroge L. Kirkland, Chevron Cor-

poration’s executive vice president of Global Upstream and Gas,

at Gorgon’s FID ceremony in September 2009. According to ACIL

Tasman, an economic consultancy, Gorgon will boost Australian

GDP by A$64 billion and generate government revenues of A$40

billion over its first 30 years. It will also create 10,000 jobs during

peak construction and 3,500 more throughout the project’s life.

Gorgon’s gas processing plant will be developed on Barrow

Island, an A-class nature reserve located 56km off Western Austra-

lia’s coast. As part of its environmental stewardship, Gorgon will

host the world’s largest carbon capture and sequestration project.

Gorgon’s externalities can be felt here and now in Australia in the

way that project planning is categorically elevating the environ-

mental standards and shaping the strategic directions of compa-

nies throughout the entire Australian oil and gas value chain.

An appetite for explorationJust how untapped Australia’s offshore basins are can now come to

light after a change in regulatory framework that has made specula-

tive surveying a growing business in Australia.

In 2007 Australia increased the time under which speculative

survey data becomes public domain from five to 15 years, a move

that is drawing the attention of the world’s top geophysics com-

panies. In practice, oil companies picking up relinquished blocks

could have waited until data became public rather than pay for new

data sets. “Essentially you only got one big ‘bite at the cherry,’”

explains Tony Weatherall, VP geomarket director Australia, New

Zealand and PNG. Weatherall chaired the International Associa-

Oil 36%

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100%

Black coal 26%

Natural gas 22%

Brown coal 11%

Renewables 5%

Fig. 2: Share of primary energyconsumption, 2007-2008 (%)

Source: ABARE

November 2010 Oil & Gas Financial Journal • www.ogfj.com 9

tion for Geophysical Contractors

for two years which lobbied hard

for the government to change the

regulation. As a result, he com-

ments, “the regulatory change

altered the landscape of seismic in

Australia, probably forever.”

Results of the change are evi-

dent. There were no speculative

surveys shot in Australia after 2002

with Veritas (before the merger

with CGG) being the last to shoot

in 2D. Since 2007 CGGVeritas has shot at least 3,000km of specula-

tive surveys by Weatherall’s estimates.

Boasting the largest fleet in the world amongst geophysics com-

panies and with seven vessels in Asia-Pacific, the goal for CGGVeri-

tas is to bring its first vessel back into Australia since 2008. “We are

certainly going to grow both proprietary and speculative surveys in

Australia,” he asserts. I would like to be shooting surveys up in the

Tony Weatherall, VP Geomarket Director Australia, New Zealand and PNG, CGGVeritas

Australians awoke on June 24 to the surprising headlines of a new prime minister in office. Julia Gillard replaced Kevin Rudd as head of the Labor Party and prime minister of Australia in a swift change of leadership that capped off a precipitous fall in Rudd’s domestic approval ratings. Gillard has since called federal elec-tions and on September 7, 2010 was elected prime minister on her own mandate following Australia’s first hung parliament since World War II.

Rudd’s demise was largely blamed on two factors: first, his decision to delay legislation on an emissions trading plan known as the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS) until 2013. Having labeled climate change “the greatest moral challenge of our generation,” his abandonment of the CPRS in exchange for budget-balancing issues ahead of federal elections damaged opinions on his principles and eradicated support from climate change advocates.

Second, and more unsettling for the resources industry, was his proposal of a resources “super profits” tax (RSPT) in April. The rancorous debate that ensued between industry and government for two months eventually cost Rudd his job. The debate cen-tered on the rate at which government defined “super-profits.” Any profits above 6% – equivalent to the long-term government bond rate – would be taxed at an additional 40%.

While the RSPT would not have affected offshore projects, it would have drastically altered the economics of onshore develop-ments, including major CSG projects in the works. Also damag-ing was the tax’s retrospective component to apply to existing projects for which investment decisions had already been made. Equally alarming was the absence of consultation between indus-try and government prior to the tax’s proposal. From a macro perspective, Australia’s stable, low-risk environment that had

attracted so much foreign investment had been compromised. Australian “sovereign risk” became an issue.

Since assuming leadership, Gillard has rescinded the RSPT, proposed variations of existing petroleum rent taxes, and opened more transparent communications channels with industry. As of the writing of this publication, no final decision has been reached concerning reforms to the fiscal regime. Below are comments from industry leaders voicing their opinions and concern over the original RSPT.

“Oil and gas is a long term investment. Long term investments need long term certainty. There are enough risks in the business through exploration, development, and oil prices without having to put regulatory and tax risk into it.” – Brent Steedman, partner, oil & gas KPMG

“Investment dollars go where the resources are and where regimes are stable. Australia is blessed with enormous resources, which is good news. But any sort of unexpected change in the tax regime discourages investment because people will wait and see what develops.” – Ann Pickard, country chair, Shell in Australia

“If the return on your investment is 6% and you are going to pay excess tax on anything above that, why don’t you just buy government bonds and sit home and watch television? One thing I know about resources is that it attracts particular sorts of inves-tors who are willing to take risks. It is a risky business and people expect a better than 6% return to be compensated for the risk.” – Norman Moore, Minister of Mines, Petroleum, Fisheries and Electoral Affairs, Government of Western Australia

“A really important point for us is trust and confidence. In Qatar, once we agree on things they don’t get changed. We do not go and do funny things and ruin the market for ourselves.” – Faisal Al Suwaidi, CEO of Qatargas

CPRS & RSPT: politically charged acronyms

CGGVeritas geologist offshore


Browse Basin and in the Northern Territory. The other growth here

is obviously processing. We have a very strong depth processing

team here and we get a lot of work from Australia.”

If you build it they will come LNG projects pushing the industry further offshore are stimulating

a new generation of marine services. New ships break grounds in

size and design and the importance of supply bases are becom-

ing more apparent to address logistical challenges. Despite being

entirely within Australian waters, the northwest’s offshore gas

fields are equidistant from the industrial hubs of Singapore and

Perth. The competition amongst supply bases can very well see

Singaporean marine yards servicing Australian offshore projects.

WA’s response for infrastructure in support of local industry is

the Australian Marine Complex (AMC). Located 20km south of

Perth the AMC is an industrial cluster of manufacturing, fabrication,

and assembly services for the marine, defense, oil and gas, and

resource industries. Earlier this year the AMC commissioned WA’s

first floating dry dock which will prove critical in servicing upcoming

projects. “We are expecting about 80 vessels to be on the North-

west Shelf over the next few years,” says AMC general manager

Mike Bailey. “A lot of those vessels will be running to and from this

facility. All of them will need repair, maintenance, and dockings.”

In the early 1970s, after a decade of unsuccessful drilling, a small independent Australian company struck 50 TcF of gas off WA to form the basis of the NWSV. While offshore gas might be the big-gest game in town, don’t tell that to Australia’s junior E&P compa-nies actively drilling onshore with the hopes of becoming the next Woodside Petroleum.

“Australian investors like betting on small stocks to see a little bit of exploration luck and watch our share price go up tenfold. They invest in a small company to see it become the next Wood-side,” says Russell Langusch, managing director of Orion Petro-leum with exploration assets in New South Wales. Juniors in Aus-tralia work as scouting agents in a sense for the bigger players whose attention is diverted to offshore basins or, in the case of CSG, liquefaction facility planning. Strategies range as to how to draw the attention of larger farm-in partners. “We generally look at assets that are impaired in some way,” says Langusch. “We would look for assets that companies have walked away from that have been too technically hard to commercialize. That is the edge we can bring – the technical ability to rescue assets that have been suspended rather than a prime A-grade asset.”

A company like Central Petroleum leans on its size by boast-ing the largest acreage package in Australia, predominantly in the Northern Territory’s Amadeus Basin; certainly attractive farm-in potential for anyone. “Independent assessments have given

us estimations of a viable exploration target of over 600 billion tons of coal above 1,000 meters that might be developed either through underground coal gasification or coal-to-liquid proces-sor,” says managing director John Heugh.

Historically, the Cooper Basin has been the main onshore region for hydrocarbon production. As such, it is very crowded with companies looking to leverage off neighboring petroleum plays. “Almost every block in the Cooper Basin has been awarded,” says Mike Scott, managing director of Cooper Energy. “In our portfo-lio we probably have three to four years of prospects left and then we will have to replace those exploration blocks with new acreage. We are active overseas precisely for that reason.”

The game changer for juniors in Australia could most likely be CSG – just ask junior CSG specialist Metgasco. David Johnson, managing director, describes Metgasco’s acreage position as “similar to that of Queensland Gas Company at the time it was taken over by BG.” Convenient for Metgasco, estimates cite the Bowen-Surat-Clarence Moreton system in eastern Australia to be a major gas producing province for a considerable period of time. “Translating gas in place to reserves and extracting gas commer-cially is an ongoing process that we are now in the middle of.” It is a discussion that would certainly be of interest to a larger company, given the CSG-to-LNG infrastructure planning amongst a consortia of supermajors.

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The AMC’s most iconic representation and greatest asset is its

Common User Facility (CUF). Bailey characterizes its enabling role

as a form of “industrial empowerment.” The CUF exists to provide

Australian based businesses with access to

large scale industrial infrastructure. The

CUF was initially funded by $100 million and

$80 million from State and Federal Govern-

ment, respectively, which enabled the con-

struction of wharves, fabrication halls, and a

protected harbor.

“Our role is to enable a company to do

projects that they could not undertake with

just their facilities by giving them that virtual

capacity increase,” says Bailey. “Whereas

they could fabricate something up to 200

tons in their workshop, our role is to give

them the ability to make a module of 2,000

tons. We want to see projects coming to

WA that can and should be done here. We

are very biased in that sense.”

A second piece of vital infrastructure for

servicing Northwest Shelf projects is the Dampier Supply Base

that is owned by Mermaid Marine Australia, the country’s largest

marine services provider for offshore oil and gas. A stand alone

Common User Facility - Australian Marine Complex


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$100 million asset, managing director & CEO Jeff Weber also con-

siders it Mermaid’s single biggest competitive advantage. “Peo-

ple often underestimate the challenges of operating vessels in the

northwest compared to Singapore where, if a vessel encounters

a problem there are 20-30 suppliers to help at any time. It is a

tremendous asset for a region where it is hard to operate because

of minimal infrastructure and scarce supplies.”

Mermaid’s core business continues to be the provision of sup-

port vessels and has invested over $100 million in fleet renew-

als over the last five years. Utilizing its vessels for pipelay sup-

port on the Pluto Project not only insulated the organization from

the financial crisis, but triggered growth in 2008-2009. But with

Gorgon and other projects approaching production, supply base

operations are becoming increasingly important. Since 2002 Mer-

maid’s operations have shifted from 95% vessels and 5% supply

base to 70% and 30% this year. “You can move boats around to

meet the market. But with a supply base it creates a ‘build and

they will come’ type scenario,” he adds.

As projects and customers come, Weber sees a host of exter-

nalities driving business. “You get to know your clients very early

on in the cycle. If you are doing offshore work, the first thing that

you do is get an office and a warehouse to store your gear. By

the time a client needs a vessel to begin their offshore work we

already have an established relationship with them.”

Exposure to long-term contracts was particularly beneficial to

Australian marine service companies during the crisis. With Gor-

gon reaching FID in September 2009, losses carried into the cri-

sis years were quickly recouped, if not, evaded altogether. Andy

Cowan, QHSE manager at Bhagwan Marine, light-heartedly com-

ments, “what financial crisis?”

Founded in 1998 with just one ship, Bhagwan Marine has flour-

ished over the past 12 years into the owner and operator of a

fleet of over 35 vessels. Its newest addition will be a custom built

landing craft – the Bhagwan Shaker – to service Barrow Island; the

Shaker’s sister ship, appropriately named the Bhagwan Mover, has

already been in operation for Gorgon for the past 12 months. In

addition to obvious revenues, servicing Gorgon has provided an

immediate opportunity to exploit the strength of Bhagwan’s ves-

sels while positioning it for future growth. “This is a niche market

and there are not many companies dealing in the port services

out to and around Barrow Island, which is largely shallow water,”

explains Cowan.

Made in AustralasiaConstruction of the AMC’s floating dry dock and the Bhagwan

Shaker was done by Strategic Marine, Australia’s largest builder

for oil and gas industry supply boats. Strategic Marine leans on

a rich tradition of shipbuilding born out of WA. Chairman Mark

Newbold explains that WA developed a commercial expertise in

building aluminium boats before anyone else. “There were a num-

ber of companies in WA that became exporters and a host of rea-

sonable sized yards that became experts. We are now exporting

the technology that we developed over the years.”

TSmarine Havila Harmony at work offshore Western Australia

CarsTsm_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 10:52 AM


Adapting to the economics of the industry, Strategic Marine

has exported its capabilities to its four shipyards in Australia,

Singapore, Vietnam, and Mexico. While proximity to Asia allows

operators to satisfy a hungry commodity demand, Australian man-

ufacturers and fabricators benefit from cost-competitive labor and

resources. Globalization and the fully developed Asian supply

chain have shifted industry dynamics forcing Australian manufac-

turers and fabricators to adjust their strategies. John Sheridan,

CEO of AusGroup, the largest fabricator in WA, explains that

“what typically comes local is schedule-critical or a product that

is price insensitive.” Fully developed project modularizations,

meanwhile, are sourced in Asia.

Strategic Marine has followed suit by developing niche spe-

cialties for its Asian yards. “Singapore is very much a special-

ist aluminium yard that is quite mature in its development and is

producing high quality work. The Vietnamese yard has opened

up quite a bit of business for us because of its steel capabilities,”

says Newbold. The Vietnam yard also played an integral role in

the construction and assembly of the AMC’s floating dry dock.

The Australian yard, meanwhile, being located within the AMC, is

shifting more into marine services repair and maintenance mindful

of the future demands of the Northwest Shelf.

Global content, local continentWhile State supported projects such as the AMC provide an

important impetus for industrial development, the synergies from

mature oil and gas provinces are proving equally beneficial in fos-

tering service sector growth. The talent and resources that have

made Aberdeen and Stavanger centers of subsea excellence are

CarsAMC_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 10:08 AMCarsBha_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 11:37 AM

Bhagwan Mover at Barrow Island


now gravitating to Perth. From executive

managers to new global headquarters, WA

oil and gas services are becoming a truly

global mosaic, with a North Sea twist.

Perhaps no greater testament to Austra-

lia leveraging, and ultimately overtaking,

North Sea activity is TSmarine, a subsea

contractor specializing in integrated life

of field services. TSmarine was founded in

Aberdeen in 2004. The Perth office, which

began in 2006 from a Woodside contract,

quickly established itself as one of the best

performing centers and completed a man-

agement buyout of the parent company in

November 2009.

As chief executive John Edwards

explains, “There was a period of nearly two

years when this office was funding the head

office which was in pretty bad financial

shape. We decided that the best way to

ring-fence what we had and make sure that

our success continued was to buy the busi-

ness from the parent company. That also

gave the parent company the needed cash

to resolve their financial issues.” Shortly

after finalizing the deal the Aberdeen head

office shut down. To complete the circle,

TSmarine plans to reopen an office in Aber-

deen on the back of a service contract.

CarsMer_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 11:44 AM

The Mermaid Voyager Berthed alongside the Mermaid Marine multi user wharf facility in Dampier

The technical challenges of subsea field

developments are creating a market for life

of field service providers. TSmarine, how-

ever, explains Edwards, is quite different

from other subsea construction companies.

“We focus most of our activities around

the well. In addition to our rigless inter-

vention capabilities we can do all the low

margin work for a drill rig typically done by

them because no one else has the technol-

ogy to do so. In our business any activity

close to the well is the highest margin work

that we can do because of its value for oil

companies.”

TSmarine’s integrated capabilities

afforded by its vessels and ROVs were a

serendipitous surprise for Woodside when

fulfilling its first contract. Essentially TSma-

rine’s services exceeded their original

mandate. “We did not just do well inter-

vention: we were the first company in this

region to install and run a Christmas tree

thereby freeing the drill rig to fulfil its real

value of actually drilling; we installed flow

bases, tied trees into each other with jump-


ers, and installed drilling conductors. It is

not typical that a company has all of those

services under one roof,” says Edwards.

Scotland’s North Sea neighbors and fel-

low experts in offshore services, the Nor-

wegians, are also finding a comfortable

home in Australia with multinational com-

panies steadily increasing their presence to

grow alongside major operators. Subsea

specialist Acergy made the full leap into

Australia in 2006 with the establishment

of a permanent office in Perth. “The scale

and complexity of the LNG projects com-

ing to market over the next few years are of

great interest to a company like Acergy,”

says Darren Cormell, managing director of

Acergy Australia.

Well equipped with world class technol-

ogy, Cormell considers Acergy’s greatest

growth driver in Australia to be its human

assets of strong local talent that leverages

the resources of a global corporation. “The

Acergy model is around having the right

mix of local knowledge that is backed by a

global consistency,” he explains. “We have

been building a local track

record over the past sev-

eral years to understand

the local issues. You back

that up with a company

that understands how to

deliver very large projects

and I think it is a model for

success.”

Acergy has been strate-

gically building its portfo-

lio of assets to support its

local talent. SapuraAcergy,

a JV between Acergy and SapuraCres, com-

mands the Sapura 3000, a regionally based

vessel with leading capabilities in heavy lift

and deep end pipelay. A proposed com-

bination with Subsea 7, currently awaiting

regulatory approval, will see an enlarged

global fleet of 42 vessels with the full spec-

trum of pipelay capabilities, several of which

would likely be bound for

Australia. According to

Cormell, “the enlarged

fleet will have the opportu-

nity to make more vessels

resident in certain parts

of the world. As Australia

becomes an ever increas-

ing part of the world, it is

likely that we will look to

optimize the fleet to make

them as attractive as pos-

sible in the region.”

With over 20 years experience provid-

ing mooring solutions to the harsh condi-

tions of the North Sea, Norwegian incorpo-

rated Viking Moorings now brings its suite

CarsStr_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 10:16 AM

Mark Newbold, Chairman, Strategic Marine


of offerings to Australian waters. “In Australia we have not had

the high caliber technical mooring solutions that we have now,”

explains Perth branch manager Trond Watland. “We have intro-

duced different methods for semisubmersible rig mooring such as

fiber ropes which are new to Australia.”

A premium on safety has placed a strong emphasis on expert

training. With the training still sourced from Norway, Viking Moor-

ings embodies North Sea-Australian knowledge transfer. “Training

people in anchor handling, fiber rope management and being able

to certify, qualify, and repair on deck is a trait that the Australian

market does not yet have, so most of our training has come out

of Stavanger,” Watland explains. “We have an all-Australian crew

in Karratha and Dampier that is being trained by Viking Moorings

staff that has come in from Norway. Everyone on that crew are the

only ones who can do what they do in Australia. It is a valuable

input that is coming into our workforce.”

When combining North Sea know how with Asian manufacturing

and a strong local industrial base, the oil and gas sector’s organiza-

tion has a truly multinational dimension. As Christian Lange, CEO of

Neptune Marine Services, argues, “I am intolerant of people saying

that Australia lacks the technology or expertise as the Gulf of Mexico

or North Sea. Australia has a fantastic education system and most

of the industry here have either come from those regions or have

worked there and repatriated. In many cases we lead the charge.”

Structured for successMajor multinationals with established expertise in their fields are

finding that success in Australia comes as much from their corpo-

rate structuring as from their product offerings. Oilfield services

giant Baker Hughes, for example, is comfortable accepting the

challenges of Australia with the backing of an internationally inno-

vative body of work. “A priority is to focus on more deepwater and

high-temperature reservoirs, aligning with the work undertaken by

major operators in the area. Most of the high-tech infrastructure

required is very familiar to Baker

Hughes,” says managing director

Bernie Kelly.

The biggest difference, how-

ever, for Baker Hughes in Aus-

tralia has been the efficiencies

generated from their geomarket

model, developed over one year

ago, which shifted vice-presi-

dents to regions and consoli-

dated the management of vari-

ous product lines.

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Project-driven solutions and

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CarsCTC_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 11:35 AM

CTC Marine RT1 Rock TrencherChristian Lange, CEO, Neptune Marine Services

CarsNep_OGFJ_1011 1 10/22/10 11:11 AM


Historically, Baker Hughes’ product lines

were managed separately and entered the

market at different times to coincide with

stages of clients’ oilfield production. “In

Australasia, we inherited seven different

offices and five different sites,” says Kelly.

“One of the areas we are

focusing on is consolida-

tion of our separate opera-

tional bases, which were

the result of our previous

divisional approach, to

provide improved efficien-

cies to customers.” New

efficiencies now ready

Baker Hughes to capitalize

on both the offshore and

CSG segments of the Aus-

tralian market.

“Deep water and

high temperature

reservoirs are the

areas in which there

is a lot of explora-

tion to come. The

level of tools that

we are going to run

down in Australia

are becoming much

more high-tech than

we have seen his-

torically. We can

export our learnings

here to other areas,”

says Kelly. The

immediate impact

of Baker Hughes’s

offshore reservoir

services will be com-

plimented by future

growth in the CSG arena by way of its

September 2009 acquisition of BJ Services

and its large CSG portfolio. Notes Kelly,

“Baker Hughes will be reassessing its strat-

egy in servicing CSG, leveraging the syn-

ergies gained with BJ Services’ customer

Darren Cormell, Managing Director Australia & New Zealand, Acergy

Acergy Team working Offshore

base, infrastructure and expertise.”

Integration, meanwhile, is the defining

feature of professional services giant Ernst

& Young throughout Asia-Pacific. Just

as major operators have set up regional

centers for value chain operations, Ernst

& Young has replicated

its approach by estab-

lishing hubs of exper-

tise for its practices: an

upstream business in WA

and Queensland; a trad-

ing business in Singapore;

and a specialist service

business to support buy-

ers in Beijing. The result,

as Perth’s managing part-

ner and oil and gas sector

leader Jeff Dowling notes

is that, “of the ‘Big

Four,’ Ernst & Young

is the only firm that

is financially inte-

grated throughout

the whole Asia-

Pacific region.”

“Shell is a very

good example of

this,” he adds.

“Shell has relocated

its upstream busi-

ness in Oceania to

Perth. They also

have a trading hub

in Singapore and

they are interfac-

ing with customers

in Beijing. All of

the global majors

are doing the same

and we are replicating our business model

accordingly. We have evolved into three

hubs with oil and gas specialists across our

disciplines in those three areas to provide

a seamless service between the producers,

buyers, traders, and support services.”

Acer_OGFJ_1011 1 10/14/10 5:03 PM


Innovation down underThe subsea systems for the Gorgon Proj-

ect in the heart of the Northwest Shelf face

combinations of high pressure, high tem-

perature, and corrosive product. “One of

the biggest challenges is the deep water

element, and especially the continental

shelf. It is effectively a subsea cliff 100km

offshore across which you need to install

a pipeline,” explains Phil Brown, director

& performance team leader of J P Kenny

Perth.

“The environmental conditions there

are possibly more challenging than any

other place in the world,” he adds.

“The cyclones generated in the area are

extremely powerful. You have a num-

ber of other interesting features like the

solitons – giant subsea rolling waves that

are within the water column – which you

would not encounter in many other parts

of the world. Adding the extreme tides,

currents, and cyclones all together, it is a

tremendous metocean design challenge.”

Responding to these challenges, J P

Kenny has applied its FEED expertise on

some of the biggest and most difficult

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Viking Moorings personnel in action on prelay vessel


subsea projects in Australia: Gorgon upstream development in

partnership with Technip; subsea development for the Julimar

Project, Apache’s largest ever gas project; and INPEX’s Ichthys

Project. “We have always had a focus on optimizing and eliminat-

ing the layers of design conservatism that have

historically existed,” says Brown. “We have also

expanded that philosophy into other design fea-

tures such as lateral buckling, for example.” All

of this has branded J P Kenny Perth an emerg-

ing center of excellence amongst it global offices

for pipeline stability. Considering Wood Group

Kenny’s global presence and identity as the spe-

cialist of its kind in the world, the Perth office’s

recognition speaks to the degree of difficulty of

subsea Australia.

Adding another dimension to subsea pipelines

is the difficulty in their design, yet the ease in

which they can be altered, even scrapped, from a project’s plans.

Eric Jas, managing director of Atteris, a design engineering com-

pany, cites that despite the difficulty of pipeline engineering, “it

doesn’t seem to me that offshore pipelines between a field and

an onshore treatment facility are at the top of a developer’s list.

A lot of the focus from an engineering and developing point of

view is at the field itself – wells, platform, onshore plants and the

marine facilities to export LNG. The pipeline is often seen as the

detail that connects the two. It is not underesti-

mated infrastructure, but normally where we put

the pipeline on the seabed depends on where the

plant will be built.”

In April Woodside announced plans to develop

its Sunrise Field with a floating LNG facility rather

than a pipeline to either East Timor or the North-

ern Territory. “That is how easily a pipeline can

be eliminated on paper,” asserts Jas. Several

large projects are currently in the planning phase

for pipeline design, construction, and first gas.

Those whole views could easily change over the

next year, Jas believes.

Meanwhile, for those pipeline projects that do go ahead, the

northwest’s seabed poses considerable challenges. Brown char-

acterizes its unconsolidated limestone materials at the top and

hard rock beneath as very difficult foundations for installing big

CarsJpk_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 10:48 AM

Phil Brown, Director and Perfor-mance Team Leader - J P Kenny


platforms or trenching pipelines.

“There is significant variability

from calcarenites and limestone

to deep sand,” agrees Marcus

Hemsted, technical sales man-

ager of CTC Marine. “There are

not a lot of trenching machines

capable of burying trunk lines in

these seabed conditions in the

current marketplace.”

Recognizing this void, CTC

Marine established a local pres-

ence in Perth in 2008 to grow its Australian operations bringing

with it cutting edge technology that is customized for the North-

west Shelf. Operating one of the biggest trenching fleets in the

world, the specific feather in the asset cap of CTC Marine is RT-1,

a potential game changing technology for large diameter subsea

pipeline stabilization. Weighing over 200 tons and capable of

trenching pipes up to 1.5 meters in diameter, Hemsted described

RT-1 as the biggest mechanical subsea pipeline trencher in the

world. “With 2.3 megawatts of trenching power she is the most

powerful mechanical rock trencher in the world. RT-1 is the pre-

mier reason for CTC Marine’s increasing presence in Australia,”

he comments.

Traditionally pipeline stabilization in the Northwest Shelf has

been done by rock dumping – an expensive exercise that carries

environmental concerns. Using RT-1, CTC Marine’s technique to

bury pipelines is used in conjunction with dumping to minimize

the effect of rock. “In sum,” Hemsted concludes, “there is no

other hard ground trencher like the RT-1 at the moment that can

productively trench pipes as big as the ones she does in the hard

seabed.”

The local innovator turned global playerLocal innovation ultimately built a growing international business

in the case of Neptune Marine Services. What is today a broad-

based subsea engineering company providing a suite of life of

field services and bespoke engineering solutions across four con-

tinents, began with one proprietary technology. “Neptune was

incorporated in 2003 in order to develop our underwater welding

technology, NEPSYS®,” says Lange. As Neptune’s flagship tech-

nology, NEPSYS® was developed to provide a low-cost perma-

nent weld solution equal to dry weld standards that was believed

to be missing in the Australian market.

Lange joined Neptune in 2006 with the task of growing a busi-

ness out of the technology. “My goal was to build a service orga-

nization with the NEPSYS® technology as the key differentiator.

After spending six months reviewing the marketplace, I felt that

there was a role for a domestic Australian company that offered

our broad range of services; and that model could be expanded

to key offshore areas,” Lange explains. Neptune’s growth and the

development of a business from its technology has been largely

fuelled by international acquisitions. Today operators look to

Neptune for engineering prowess while construction companies

are supported by surveys, diving, ROVs, pipeline stabilization ser-

vices, and upfront engineering to support detailed design.

However, Neptune’s diverse capabilities often put them in

nebulous and unintended competition with traditional EPICs that

is consequently is reshaping the traditional EPIC model. Explains

Lange, “one thing that we that we need to address and contend

with is a lot of EPIC companies looking at us as competitors. We

have made the separation between ‘church and state’ so we very

clearly support them and do not compete with them on the con-

struction scope. That is not to say, however that they do not

compete with us. A lot of those companies are looking at various

life of field services – from seismic drilling to decommissioning –

which is our sweet spot.”

��

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CarsAtt_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 10:06 AM

Eric Jas, Managing Director, Atteris


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CarsPle_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 11:25 AM

Power of the peopleThe fiscal uncertainty that is still looming

as many LNG projects approach FID will

likely “change development timeframes

until people get a better handle on how to

bring these projects on,” predicts Dowling.

Fiscal uncertainty notwithstanding, project

timetables could be delayed on the basis

of another major industry concern: a labor

shortage. The construction boom for Aus-

tralian LNG projects is estimated to create

55,000 new jobs. Additionally, projects

moving into brownfield environments will

place an increasing need on local services

leaving many in the industry pondering

about how to fill labor needs.

“I am concerned as to the collective

plan of both industry and government to

be ready for this without driving inflation-

ary wage pressures, the flow on effect to

cost of living, and production target assur-

ance for the operating companies,” adds

Plexal Group CEO Steve Jones.

Construction for many LNG projects is

not scheduled to begin for another few

years so industry and government still have

the silver lining of time on their side. Rob-

inson points out that not all 55,000 jobs will

be created at once. “There is going to be

an elevation of a need for resources over

a much longer term. Fortunately we will

have time to work on mid-term and long-

term solutions,” notes Craig Follett, Aus-

tralasia regional director of Brunel Energy,

the global leader in white collar placement

and the Australian leader for blue collar

placement for the oil and gas industry.

However, time cannot breed compla-

cency. Follett highlights a three pronged

approach to address labor shortages.

“The longer term solution is the stimulus

of technically skilled people” to align stu-

dents’ technical directions with industry

requirements.

Second are apprenticeships programs

to transfer traditional heavy industry skills

into oil and gas spe-

cific needs such as

reservoir engineering

or drilling. Third, is

the continuous devel-

opment of Australia’s

supernumerary pro-

gram to team interna-

tional specialists with

local graduates and

accelerate the knowl-

edge program.

Australia’s 457 Visa is a process in place to

facilitate this type of transfer. “We even think

that you can cherry pick certain projects of

national significance and create a highway for

them whereby the immigration process is tai-

lored to match project requirements. That is

where government and industry need to align

their needs. If that highway is fabricated, Bru-

nel is ready to travel on it,” he adds.

A turning point in the industrial relations

challenge could very well be the new Labor

government. While still too early to tell,

Brunel believes that positive signals have

been sent regarding more active engage-

ment between industry and government

on this issue which could realistically inhibit

the full development of Australian oil and

gas.

Len Bunn, Executive Director; Steve Jones, CEO and Dean Paton, Executive Director, Plexal Group


wants to perform as the best in the

world,” says Brendan Fitzgerald,

managing director and co-founder

of safety and risk engineering con-

sultancy Vanguard Solutions. In its

10 years of operations Vanguard

and its personnel have taken the

lead on safety engineering for

many of Australia’s largest projects

such as Woodside’s Chinguetti,

North Rankin B, and Pluto. “The

problem though is that sometimes

people become overly focused on the slips, trips, and falls part of

safety – which are easy to identify – rather than the management

and process risk.”

Any regulatory changes will add to an already progressive five

years for safety standards in Australia. The National Offshore

Petroleum Safety Authority (NOPSA) began operations in 2005.

Today Australian law requires every offshore facility to have a

NOPSA accepted safety case. The mandatory introduction of the

safety case, Fitzgerald notes, is one of the biggest changes he has

seen in his over 25 years in the industry. However, he believes,

more action needs to support the plans. “A lot of people think

that the job is over when the safety case is delivered. Producing

the safety case and having it accepted by the regulator is just the

first step. You then have the lifetime of the facility to operate. The

safety case is a roadmap and you have to walk the talk.”

Safety issues for drilling are an obvious concern with industry

penetrating harsher environments and increasing water depths.

Well designs are becoming more complex through extended

reach, horizontal, and multi-lateral wells; all pose high risks and

enormous costs of failure not previously encountered in Australia.

The best accident prevention and safety enforcement is quality

training as viewed by Welltrain,

a rapidly expanding school for

operationally relevant well con-

trol training. Welltrain addresses

both the human element of acci-

dent prevention and harnesses

the transferrable skills between

offshore, onshore, and CSG

drilling.

“Improved levels of train-

ing are required to match the

skills necessary to operate more

complicated equipment and well

Safety first and alwaysThree converging issues have heightened the safety mindset in

Australia to new levels. In August 2009 the Montara rig, owned

by Thai exploration company PTTEP, began leaking oil for two

months off the coast of WA. The final results of a federal gov-

ernment inquiry into the report are expected by year’s end with

likely regulatory changes to follow. Second is Deepwater Horizon

with its impact reverberating around the world. In response, 30 of

Australia’s biggest oil and gas producers are preparing an industry

wide agreement to allocate financial resources in the event of an

oil spill in Australian waters. Third, and perhaps most challenging,

is the integration of a multitude of new workers under one com-

mon safety culture.

Lange asserts this might be easier said than done. Australia

“will have a large influx of people who may not speak the lan-

guage and have different cultures, educational backgrounds, and

expectations. When you put all the new backgrounds, cultures,

and expectations together, the management of the integration of

all of these people is my main concern.”

Specific changes to the regulatory landscape are still unclear.

“I think there is no doubt that the Australian oil and gas industry

CarsVan_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 11:33 AM

Bernie Kelly, Managing Director, Baker Hughes Australia

Brendan Fitzgerald, Managing Direc-tor, Vanguard Solutions


designs,” says training manager Dave Pol-

lack. “Today, we have cyber-outfitted drill-

ing rigs where the work for a driller is all

done through joysticks, not brake handles.

The driller is more removed from the drill-

ing process by being insulated inside a

quiet, high tech environment.”

Pollack notes that existing well control

training tends to be more academic and

does not provide sufficient practical and

operational training. Welltrain aims to

plug that gap by blending the practical

with the theoretical.

Third party drilling training is still an

evolving market in Australia that is neces-

sarily driven by industry changes. “Previ-

ously, in-house training courses were a

feature of working for major oil and gas

operators,” explains Welltrain managing

director Tom Brand. “In the last 10 years,

however, companies are tending more

towards outsourcing training. There are

also a lot of smaller rig owners who just

don’t have the resources or specialized

skills to run their own training department.”

Specialized training is also required

in the comparatively new CSG industry.

“Whilst the mechanics of the drilling pro-

cess are essentially the same, crew mem-

bers may not be aware of the hazards that

are involved in drilling CSG wells where

hydrocarbons are being exploited,” adds

Brand.

Engineering the futureWhile Australia is preparing for an eventful

decade of major LNG projects whose pro-

duction and economic impact will extend

decades more into the future, the head of

one engineering firm is looking ahead to

life after LNG. “We have this unbelievable

LNG energy source from which we hope to

be the number two provider in the world,”

says Steve Jones, CEO of Plexal Group.

“But it is a finite resource. Where will Aus-

tralia be in 50-60 years when these fields

are seriously depleted?”

No stranger to conventional hydro-

carbon engineering, the Plexal Group’s

expertise is in brownfield expansions,

upgrades, and marginal

greenfield developments

with a focus on control

and safeguarding systems.

Jones cites Plexal’s work

on Woodside’s Goodwyn

A Safeguarding System as

a critical experience that

underpinned its extension

into Thailand and its con-

tinued expansion through-

out Southeast Asia. Plexal

proved its ability to

upgrade and transfer under full production

conditions, with no dedicated shutdowns,

a gas platform of 3,500 safety devices.

But driven by a larger purpose – and a

clear business opportunity – Jones is posi-

tioning Plexal to leverage technical IP from

LNG and transfer it into renewables which

he believes is the next big industry for Aus-

tralia. “The LNG business

is going to produce a lot of

revenue. It is also going to

bring in a lot of technical

expertise. In the medium

term, we would like to

grow a lot of this exper-

tise and get ourselves

involved in geothermal

energy, tidal power gen-

eration, or concentrated

solar power,” says Jones.

Indeed WA’s total natural

resource endowment creates many syner-

gies between conventional fossil fuels and

renewable energies. “There are massive

water and power issues in the northwest

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qualified personnel in all disciplines and

throughout all project phases whose

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Providing Professionals Globally

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CarsBru_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 11:27 AM

Craig Follett, Regional Director Australasia, Brunel Energy


The best place on the planet for oil and gas Natural gas is still the biggest game in town. With declining pro-

duction in the North Sea, a drilling moratorium casting a shadow

on the Gulf of Mexico, and Brazil still years away from first oil in its

pre-salt fields, Australia is the darling of the offshore oil and gas

world. “This is such an exciting and dynamic time,” says Belinda

Robinson. “This is the industry that has helped Australia evade

some of the more negative consequences of the financial crisis.

This industry provides so much optimism for the long-term eco-

nomic sustainability of Australia and in doing so, supplying clean

energy. It has so much going for it that it is hard to not be excited

for it.”

Perth, the capital of oil and gas Australia and this year’s host

of the World Energy Cities Partnership, is certainly reaping the

benefits of the rising tide of the industry. Beyond the quantifiable

returns on multi-billion dollar projects, a walk down St. George’s

Terrace or a stroll through an engineering office will bring to life

the international face of oil and gas in Perth. “The industry is

really putting us on the map in a global sense – it is profiling WA

and the city of Perth to the world,” beams Dowling, a native of

WA. “The oil and gas industry being a global industry is really

helping drive that cultural change in our society and it is a benefit

that should not be underestimated.”

Australia has all of the necessary assets to become the premier

oil and gas province for the foreseeable future. Voracious Asian

demand for preponderant natural resources has attracted global

talent and capital which in turn are stimulating innovation and

enhancing service industries. A very favorable picture is painted

for Australia’s future as an exporter of cutting edge technology

and leader in clean energy if it can surmount today’s obstacles

of fiscal uncertainty and human resource deficits. The mixture

of future promise and current challenges present unprecedented

opportunities for coordination and collaboration between industry

and government. All things considered, the right place, right time

for exciting oil and gas activity is Australia, today.

so it is rewarding to be involved in sustaining that cornerstone of

the Australian economy in a way that has a lower environmental

footprint. If we can really leverage off this industry maintaining

an energy production or delivery focus to the world, that will be

Australia’s next fantastic export.”

Oil 36%

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100%

Black coal 17%

Natural gas 33%

Brown coal 6%

Renewables 8%

Fig. 3: Forecast share of primary energyconsumption, 2029-30 (%)

Source: ABARE

CarsWel_OGFJ_1011 1 10/18/10 11:32 AM

Tom Brand, Managing Director and Dave Pollack, Training Manager, Welltrain

AUSTRALIA:In any continental sized country there exists room for several mega-industrial

regions. Not to be outdone by surging offshore activity in Western Australia, the

eastern seaboard states of Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria are devel-

oping their own prized assets at a frenetic pace. Onshore coal seam gas (CSG) deposits

estimated at 250 trillion cubic feet have the industry abuzz. The viability of their conver-

sion to liquefied natural gas (LNG) received major votes of confidence with recent final

investment decisions for two large-scale projects. Meanwhile, Victoria, the birthplace

of Australia’s oil and gas industry, will soon commence another 40 years of offshore gas

production, adding to its already rich history as the source of 30% of the country’s gas.

Eastern rising

PT.II

This sponsored supplement was produced by Focus Reports.

Editorial Directors: Karim Meggaro, Manuel Felipe B. Mendoza

Project Coordinator: Merlin Ozkan For exclusive interviews and more

info, plus log onto energy.focus-reports.net or write to contact@

focusreports.net

www.ogfj.com • Oil & Gas Financial Journal August 2011 energy.focusreports.net 1

Fairview compressor sta-tion, Queensland Australia. Courtesy of Santos

advertisement

2 energy.focusreports.net August 2011 Oil & Gas Financial Journal • www.ogfj.com

“We see the LNG industry as

an opportunity to create a new

generation of employment and

prosperity in Queensland,” says

Anna Bligh, the state’s premier.

“We have just come out of the

global financial crisis, and are

still building the recovery. We

identified the LNG industry as a

very important part of rebuild-

ing and creating new industries.”

Despite the challenges confront-

ing Queensland from devastating

floods in early 2011, the burgeon-

ing CSG industry is still gaining

momentum. The government

has played an instrumental role in

creating the correct environment

to encourage the development

of the world’s first CSG-to-LNG

projects, and today four liquefac-

tion terminals are planned for the

coastal town of Gladstone. Speaking in December 2010, Bligh

explained that “the emergence of the CSG and LNG industry is

a natural progression from our gas policy – our energy policy – in

the early part of this century. But it is equally true that it could not

have reached the stage that it has, as quickly as it has in the last 8

months, without enormous focus from government.”

As a well-established coal exporter for several decades,

Queensland has taken advantage of relatively new technologies

to bring gas out of the state’s coal seams in response to global

shifts towards cleaner energy. As Bligh explains, “these projects

are, in both resource and investment terms, as big as the Gorgon

Project in Western Australia. They have been brought to regula-

tory approval and financial decision stage within 2-3 years which in

world terms is remarkable.”

Eastern flagshipsOver the past year huge progress has been made to ensure that

Australian CSG-to-LNG will deliver. Of the four mega-LNG projects

planned, two have reached final investment decision (FID) total-

ling over $30 billion, and one has crossed the crucial threshold of

environmental approval.

Queensland Gas Company, a subsidiary of British Gas, reached

FID for its $15 billion Queensland Curtis LNG Project (QCLNG)

in November 2010. A 380 km pipeline will link CSG fields in the

Surat Basin to its 8.5 mtpa LNG plant on Curtis Island with first gas

expected in 2014.

The Santos-Petronas-Total-Kogas consortium rang in 2011 with

FID for its $16 billion, 7.8 mtpa Gladstone LNG (GLNG) project.

With first gas expected for 2014, Mark Macfarlane, ceo of GLNG,

describes it as “a world class CSG-to-LNG project that will put

Gladstone and Queensland on the world LNG stage. It is a project

of great significance for Queensland and all of Australia.”

The ConocoPhillips and Origin Energy joint venture, Australia-

Pacific LNG, gained federal environmental approval in February,

paving the way for FID by mid-2011. Still waiting in the wings is

environmental approval and FID for Royal Dutch Shell and Petro-

China’s Arrow Energy LNG project.

Economic studies indicate that a medium-sized 28 mtpa LNG

industry – far below what Queensland will produce – could create

over 18,000 jobs, generate $40 billion of private sector invest-

ment, and increase gross state product by one percent. Output

from these four projects will propel Australia to become a top-two

global LNG exporter over the coming decade.

A rising tideMovement from the majors is mobilizing industry across the greater

eastern seaboard. Much of the buzz about Queensland and New

South Wales CSG stems from the relative proximity of fields to

mass markets and their connectivity to existing infrastructure.

Feedstock for LNG is an enticing option. But when considering

domestic clean energy targets which favor investment in gas-fired

plants, then asset prospectivity becomes highly valued for internal

2000

1750

1500

1250

1000

750

500

250

0

Mm

bls

bcf

300

250

200

1501998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010

Liquids (oil, condensate, LPG

Gas (bd):

CSG

Conventional gas

LNG

Historical Australian oil and gas production

Source: APPEA

Hon. Anna Bligh, Premier of Queensland

Mark Macfarlane, CEO, GLNG

��

��

CarNac_OGFJ_1108 1 7/14/11 11:24 AMwww.ogfj.com • Oil & Gas Financial Journal August 2011 energy.focusreports.net 3

consumption. “New South Wales

currently imports 7% of its energy

requirements and consumes

about 27% of Australia’s total

energy,” states Ian Halstead, ceo

of Sydney-based junior Planet

Gas. “Another 12-14 gas-fired

power plants are projected for

construction between now and

2016. Additionally, large scale

LNG projects in Queensland will

consume much of the gas produced in the eastern Australia, leav-

ing a potential deficit in the domestic market. Planet is targeting

that deficit.” Backing Halstead’s assertion are Planet Gas’s well

addressed CSG licenses in the Sydney and Gunnedah Basins that

are adjacent to existing discoveries; Cooper Basins blocks contain-

ing significant thicknesses of coal with high gas formations; and

exploratory shale potential in its Cooper reserves. With a diversi-

fied portfolio of asset classes in strategically proximate areas to

market and infrastructure, Planet Gas embodies the strategy for

success of the next generation of

CSG-minded juniors.

While gas-fired plants are in

the planning phases and the major

LNG projects ramp-up construc-

tion, some companies have more

independent ambitions. Rather

than waiting for the big consortia

to bring LNG facilities online,

Eastern Star Gas is building one

of its own. Originally focused

on conventional oil and gas, Eastern Star Gas shifted to CSG in

2005 in New South Wales – away from the traditional hotbed of

Queensland. David Casey then joined as managing director to

apply his 20 years experience in CSG to the company’s new assets.

The company currently has three agreements to provide over

1,700 petajoules to domestic power generation companies. But,

as Casey explains, “the challenges from a CSG perspective were

produceability: the fact that unlike a conventional reservoir you do

not get maximum production on day one. Looking at those chal-

David Casey, Managing Director and CEO, Eastern Star Gas

Ian Halstead, CEO, Planet Gas


lenges, we realized that you cannot change how a CSG field can be

developed; so we looked at how to liquefy it, and not necessarily at

the liquefaction process itself, but rather the size and scaleability.”

The company is now progressing to front-end engineering and

design on a mid-size LNG plant with Hitachi and Toyo. This is

particularly groundbreaking given the size of the company and their

ambitions for the future scale of their plant. “Small scale has been

done elsewhere,” says Casey. “What hasn’t been done is looking at

a large project using small-scale technology: genuinely looking at

a project that could deliver four million tons, but doing it in half mil-

lion ton increments. One of the attractive qualities for Hitachi and

Toyo in dealing with Eastern Star Gas is the opportunity to prove

that their technology and their skill sets can actually match world-

scale projects, only with smaller trains. The more we look at it the

more we get excited by the prospects and the benefits of using

smaller scale technology.”

Start local, think globalIn addition to innovative methodologies, international players have

been converging on the state to strengthen their global brands.

“In terms of development oppor-

tunities there is nowhere in the

world that has as many opportu-

nities as Queensland does right

now,” says Terry Bayliff, Laing

O’Rourke’s global leader for oil

and gas. The British construc-

tion giant recently made its first

foray into the hydrocarbons sector

bringing Bayliff on board to lead

the charge after a distinguished

career at Bechtel.

The global oil and gas move

began in Australia with a contract

to build a liquefaction plant for

mid-scale specialist LNG Ltd. The

deal was suspended when Arrow

Energy, the plant’s originally slated

buyer, was acquired by a Royal

Dutch Shell-PetroChina joint ven-

ture. Undeterred, Laing O'Rourke

has since been awarded contracts

for a Gorgon Gas utility project and a BG water treatment plant.

The company also recently completed the Dalby Power Project for

Origin Energy, which is powered by gas from unconventional fields.

Bayliff is confident in Laing O'Rourke’s strengths to compete in a

crowded oil and gas construction market. The company special-

izes in multi-discipline, self-perform construction for which there

are few general contractors in Australia. “Most contractors are

single discipline,” says Bayliff. “They are either civil, mechanical, or

they are electrical disciplines. Laing O'Rourke offers a full suite of

packages.”

Bayliff hopes to use Australia as a springboard for launching

Laing O'Rourke’s oil and gas offering across the world. “I expect

that there will be a period of up to three to five years of growth

here in Australia: winning projects and demonstrating excellence

in execution. This is the offering we are going to take around the

world and it has to be grown here in Australia initially.”

The Australian experience that Bayliff aims to replicate at the

global level has already come to fruition for another multinational

resources contractor, Nacap. The Dutch pipeline construction

company looks to Australia for a high benchmark of technical learn-

ings and, more lucratively, 30% of total global turnover. “Australia

is somewhat unique in our global pipeline market,” says Mark

CarPla_OGFJ_1108 1 7/14/11 12:00 PM

Mark Bumstead, Managing Director, Nacap in Australia

Terry Bayliff, Global Oil & Gas Leader, Laing O'Rourke

CarsSta_OGFJ_1108 1 7/14/11 12:56 PM


Bumpstead, managing director

of Nacap Australia. “Contrary to

most other Nacap markets, our

pipelines here are characterized

by long distances.” Indeed, the

tyrannies of distance and strict

environmental codes in Australia

require many service companies to

streamline logistics and innovate

their operational models. These

models will certainly be tested

with the construction wave of transmission infrastructure to connect

CSG fields to markets. “When considering not just the trunk lines

but the upstream gathering facilities, there are many thousands of

kilometers of pipelines to be built to support these CSG projects,”

says Bumpstead.

Daunting as the challenge might be, a company such as Nacap

leans on paramount experience. Nacap is currently construct-

ing pipelines for two nationally significant projects – a $5.4 billion

desalinization plant in Victoria and 940 km of looping for an Epic

Energy pipeline from Queensland

to South Australia. Traversing vast

stretches of Australian outback,

the Epic Energy project, QSN3, is

being constructed at astonishing

rates of 4 ½ - 5 km per day. As

Bumpstead notes, “it is a long

way to even walk each day much

less construct a pipeline.” As a

result of successful execution and

project delivery, “Nacap world-

wide has benefitted very much from its presence here. A lot of the

risk management systems, procedures, and practices that we have

developed for ‘business as usual’ in Australia have been taken to

Nacap globally.”

Aussie rulesDespite Laing O’Rourke and Nacap’s success, the trap for new

players in the sector can be huge. Australia’s rich resources can

naturally invoke exuberance amongst service companies from afar.

��

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CarSyn_OGFJ_1108 1 7/14/11 11:58 AMCarEas_OGFJ_1108 1 7/14/11 11:30 AM

Michael Carroll, Managing Director, Synertec

Troy Campbell, CEO, Easternwell Group

CarLai_OGFJ_1108 1 7/14/11 11:27 AM

Integrated Seismic

Technologies

Integrated Seismic

Technologies

Design ñ Drilling ñ Acquisition ñ Processing ñ Interpretation ñ R & D

www.velseis.com

CarVel_OGFJ_1108 1 7/14/11 11:55 AM8 energy.focusreports.net August 2011 Oil & Gas Financial Journal • www.ogfj.com

Mat-supported jackups fared well in hurricanes

Steve Hearn, managing director and chief geophysicist of Velseis, a Queensland-

based geophysics company explains the merits of a local company over larger seismic players, and the challenges of bringing a science-focused company to the market. For the full interview, log onto energy.focusre-ports.net.

What can Velseis offer to clients that they cannot get from the bigger geophysi-cal companies?

There are definitely some things that the bigger players can offer that are arguably more difficult for us, one of which is volume. Sometimes there will be a need for a com-pany to supply a huge amount of equipment for a very big project. It is possible for Velseis to compete for these projects. We have some long-standing arrangements with rental orga-nizations – when we want to push our channel count up we bring in more gear. However, it is perhaps easier for the larger players to do those types of projects.

Velseis’s unique offering comes in the com-pany’s ability to tailor a service to a particular

problem or technical requirement quickly and efficiently. The company has an effective in-house R&D division, which is perhaps unusual for a company of our size. We routinely do specialized software devel-opment - this might be to tune a particular acquisi-tion program, or to model a particular geological problem. This is all about giving our clients custom-ized, scientific service. I am a geophysicist and am always willing to explore something interesting or something new, and I am the one that has to sign off on it. Arguably this enables more flexibility than in some bigger companies where developmental work might be subject to more formal procedures.

A lot of geophysical start-up companies are very science driven, very into innova-tion, but trying to commercialize that in a

competitive marketplace can be difficult. Why is Velseis different?

It is quite possible that if more entrepre-neurial people had been running the company, it might have had a totally different direction, but this is the way that it has come out. The people running the company generally make reasonably intelligent decisions on the basis of information available to us. We like to think that there are upsides to the model that we have. There have been plenty of cases with the big geophysi-cal companies starting out as technology driven companies, and at some point in the growth cycle they have moved to having

more professional business people running the companies, which hasn’t always worked out for the better.

Steve Hearn, Managing Director and Chief Geophsyscist, Velseis

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100Percent

WA55%

VIC19%

QLD14%

JPDA7%

SA4%

TAS1%

(NSW,NT<1%)

Western Australia and Victoria remain the largest gasproducing states in Australia, while Queenslandproduction, predominantly from coal seem gas,continues to increase its share.

Source of gas production

Source: APPEA


quite well. We specifically design our kit to be compliant to local

regulations, but with the restrictions in work crews we innovate the

rigs and design the equipment to have the least amount of people

operating them.”

Local market insight paid dividends for another Australian

company further down the value chain. In February 2011, multi-

But the country’s array of regulatory and environmental codes can

prove difficult for new companies who do not fully comprehend the

impact of regulations on project delivery. Troy Campbell, ceo of

Easternwell Group, Australia’s largest integrated well servicing and

drilling provider for CSG and mining, concurs. “Foreign companies

are entering a very restricted market. There is also a complexity

around the logistics and management of operations.”

An established local presence and strong market familiarity

breed an Australian advantage. Easternwell Group’s industry

standing is a result of a series of diversifications in response to mar-

ket needs. Originally focused on well servicing and drilling since

1976, the surge in CSG exploration from 1999 onwards and an oil

price spike that attracted foreign players led Easternwell Group

to enter new service sectors. By merging into a broader mining

services group in 2009 and most recently, joining forces with main-

tenance and service heavyweight Transfield Services, Easternwell

Group now has access, as Campbell describes, “to the front and tail

end of projects.” Integrated services combined with local market

knowledge produce a winning formula for Easternwell Group.

“Obviously being an Australian contractor we know the conditions

CarUndeRev_OGFJ_1108 1 7/25/11 2:18 PM


discipline consultancy and special-

ist engineering firm Synertec was

awarded a landmark contract for

the QCLNG project. In one of

the largest orders to an entirely

Australian systems integrator, Syn-

ertec will engineer 45 analyzers

for lead EPC contractor Bechtel.

Managing director Michael Carroll

specifically noted Synertec’s Aus-

tralian edge. “In terms of process

analytics, one of our big differentiating points is local knowledge

which starts with standards and follows right through to environ-

ment. Curtis Island, sitting in a hurricane prone area, calls for very

complex Australian standards which are not just a derivative of the

US or Europe. Bechtel was very engrossed in the rigidity of Aus-

tralia’s standards and dove into specific details with our experts.”

Originally specialized in process analytics for pharmaceuticals,

Synertec diversified into oil and gas as the pharma market consoli-

dated and CSG expanded. The commonality that enabled the shift

was expertise in equally complex,

risky, and stringently regulated

Australian industrial environments.

A growing company still break-

ing into the CSG market with IP

in sampling systems, Carroll is

confident that local knowledge,

local presence will pave the way

for Synertec. “International play-

ers are converging on Australia.

Australian engineering is innova-

tive and has an in-depth understanding of the regulatory environ-

ment that will overlay all of these projects.”

Victoria: back to the futureWestern Australia and Queensland fittingly grab the lion’s share of

headlines given the size of their offshore and CSG industries. Yet

as the state of Victoria demonstrates, size and industrial weight do

not necessarily go hand-in-hand. Resting at the foot of continental

Australian and smaller than every state except Tasmania, Victoria

CarBas_OGFJ_1108 1 7/14/11 2:45 PM

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CarUni_OGFJ_1108 1 7/14/11 11:57 AM

Mark Paton, CEO, Cue Energy Neil Doyle, CEO, Oil Basins

CarEne_OGFJ_1108 1 7/14/11 11:45 AM


was the birthplace of the country’s petroleum industry and is still

very much a cornerstone of its future.

“Victoria has up to 30 years in proven conventional gas reserves

spread across three producing basins – Gippsland, Bass and

Otway,” says Michael O’Brien, Victoria’s minister for energy and

resources. “GeoScience Victoria estimates that 4-8 trillion cubic

feet of gas remains to be discovered along with up to 600 million

barrels of liquids.”

Australia’s first oil discovery was in Victoria

in 1924 at an onshore field with an estimated

50 million barrels of oil in place. In December

1964 the Glomar-III exploration vessel drilled

Australia's first significant offshore well and

discovered gas. In 1967 the Kingfish-1 well

encountered Australia's largest oil field with

1.2 billion barrels recoverable. Fifteen of the

Victoria’s first 16 offshore wells were success-

ful, yielding three major gas fields and Austra-

lia’s two largest oil fields to-date.

ExxonMobil, the country’s oldest oil and

gas company, was instrumental in all of these

discoveries. John Dashwood, chairman of

ExxonMobil Australia notes that “we have

a long history and heritage of developing

resources for the benefit of this nation. We

have produced two-thirds of the country’s oil

out of the Gippsland Basin and one-third of

the country’s cumulative gas. There is indeed

a legacy feeling that Australia has been a real

jewel in ExxonMobil’s history.” Modeling the

economic impact of its Gippsland Basin Join

Venture’s operations, ExxonMobil calculates

that its Bass Strait hydrocarbon production has generated over

$200 billion to Australian GDP over the past four decades.

As Bass Strait oil production declines, gas output still has

substantial life ahead. “We are only about halfway through the

gas reserves and have a significant number of years to continue to

extract gas,” adds Dashwood. While production in the Gippsland

Basin is 40 years old, we are about to put the biggest steel

structure in the Bass Strait – the Marlin B platform – to develop

the Turrum field.” ExxonMobil Australia’s Kipper Tuna Turrum

Project is currently one of the largest domestic gas developments

on the eastern seaboard. An estimated $4 billion project which

holds enough natural gas to power a city of one million people for

35 years, Kipper facility construction is expected to be complete

by 2012 and Turrum in 2013. “There are still another couple of

decades of production to come from the Bass Strait and a lot of

business yet to be done here.”

Eyes fixed northWhile Victoria’s offshore basins are largely the plays of majors such

as ExxonMobil, BHP Billiton, and Santos, there is still substantial

SE Gobe production facility

activity amongst juniors who

accumulate acreage through joint

ventures and proprietary bid-

ding. Juniors such as Bass Strait

Oil Company, Oil Basins, and Cue

Energy are all active in coastal

Victorian waters.

However, the compelling

presence of majors in a relatively

confined offshore space leads

many Victorian-based juniors to

seek more distant markets. Leading the charge of Melbourne-

based companies with eyes fixed north is Cue Energy behind its

new ceo Mark Paton. With an extensive background in produc-

tion and operations Paton joined Cue Energy in early 2011 keen

to build on its already successful corporate foundation. While

Cue joint ventures in the Bass Strait, its operational strengths stem

from international markets. Cue Energy is among the rare batch

of Australian juniors that enjoys mature production – slightly over

half a million barrels in 2010 – through tenements in New Zealand,

Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. The company will see a further

production boost when its joint venture Wortel field, operated by

Santos, comes onstream in December 2011 in Indonesia.

Paton is now targeting $1 billion market capitalization over the

next 3-5 years by combining new exploration plays with maximiza-

tion of existing assets. “Rather than meteoric growth from a zero

base asset, we see value in assets that are near to or in production.

We are long on exploration opportunities but short on near term

additive production opportunities. I do not want to wholly rely on

exploration success for growth.”

Although keen to maximize existing production, Cue is

CarAus_OGFJ_1108 1 7/14/11 11:53 AM

John Bell, CEO, Australian Drilling Associates

Cue Energy Maari drilling activity with wellhead platform and FPSO


equally well-poised to capitalize off exploration in the Carnar-

von Basin – Australia’s “hot” offshore LNG province. “We have

extremely good partners in these blocks,” admits Paton, refer-

ring to Woodside and Apache. Having firm partnerships with the

companies who are looking to aggregate additional gas and build

more LNG trains speaks a great deal to the fine work done by my

predecessor.”

Operating under a similar philosophy is Oil Basins Limited which

explores in the offshore Gippsland Basin; offshore Carnarvon

Basin; and onshore Canning Basin in Western Australia. Like Cue

Energy, Oil Basins’ acreage is in strategically proximate areas to

existing or future development infrastructure. Since listing on the

Australian Stock Exchange in August 2006, Oil Basins has signifi-

cantly expanded its initial portfolio of two permits and now stands

to earn interests in

drill-ready assets in

both the Gippsland

and Canning Basins.

The company’s

upstream interests

which hold game-

changing potential

include 100% rights

to Backreef, a low

cost oil play in the

Canning Basin,

and 100% equity in

R3 situated in the

Carnarvon Basin. Oil

in place for the undeveloped Cyrano Oil Field within the R3 block

was upwardly revised by 250% in April 2011.

Oil Basins aligned with LNG Ltd last August to evaluate projects

in the Canning Basin using future Oil Basins gas as feedstock. Oil

Basins will have the right to invest up to 20% on an at-cost basis

in any LNG project, with a maximum of 30% should the company

deliver certified 2P gas reserves of at least 1 Tcf. A potentially

significant long-term investment opportunity, it is consistent with

the company’s strategy of “sweating the value of its assets” nearby

existing or future infrastructure. With the agreement in place,

Oil Basins is confident in its ability to attract farm-in interest in its

strategic and untapped CSG and shale gas portfolio.

The enablerDespite the promise and potential of attractive petroleum plays,

life as a junior can be tough in

Australia. A long coast, huge

mobilization costs, and hefty

compliance fees make it difficult

for naturally cash-strapped juniors

to fund offshore campaigns. The

commodity price spike of 2006-

2008 exacerbated cost dilemmas

while engendering a new model

of consortium management to

assist juniors exploring offshore.

“The rapid rise in oil prices in 2006 created a worldwide short-

age of offshore drilling rigs,” says John Bell, ceo and founder of

Australian Drilling Associates (ADA). “Every oil company wanted

to drill and the

demand in Australia

was unprecedented.

It was also difficult

for the smaller inde-

pendents to get the

attention of drilling

contractors for a one

or two well program,

particularly when rig

utilization worldwide

was peaking at 98%.”

Recognizing the

synergies of scaling

costs, the oppor-

tunity arose for Bell in 2006 to create consortiums comprised of

junior independents and medium sized E&Ps with sufficient terms

to attract drilling contractors with rig availability. “The consortium

model spread the mobilization and demobilization costs, reduced

third party costs as a direct consequence of purchasing volume,

and gave flexibility for campaigns to drill more wells with the added

commercial benefits normally expected for major oil companies,” he

explains.

Over the past two years ADA has managed several consortiums

which equated to $1 billion worth of exploration and appraisal

wells. By coinciding with diminishing recruitment rates of drilling

personnel by the majors over the past 20 years, ADA functions, as

Bell describes, as “a virtual traditional drilling department where we

could make a contribution to the industry by optimizing on person-

nel resources and drilling equipment. We provide well engineering

Ron van der Schalk, Managing Direc-tor, Uhde Shedden

GLP Micro LNG Plant in Westbury, Tasmania


and well planning; materials and logistics management; procure-

ment of well consumables; contracting of all associated services to

drill; HSE management; and well operations management just as

any oil companies drilling department would.”

Victorian innovation “Melbourne is Australia's knowledge, innovation and technology

capital and is home to a large cluster of research institutes ready to

collaborate on innovative cross-sector projects,” asserts Minister

O’Brien. Outmatched by Western Australia and Queensland on

resource size, Victoria’s culture of innovation gives it a comparative

advantage in cutting-edge hydrocarbon infrastructure. Several gas

process engineering firms lead the way in revolutionizing Australia’s

downstream landscape.

Uhde Shedden, a ThyssenKrupp company specialized in gas

processing and multi-disciplinary engineering for the oil and gas and

petrochemical sectors, relies on Australia as a fulcrum for rotating

talented labor amongst its global projects. “We very much benefit

by utilizing Australia as a skills base from which to move smart peo-

ple around the region for various projects,” says managing director

Ron van der Schalk. Already a major player in CSG processing, van

der Schalk is looking beyond traditional industry to other avenues

where Uhde Shedden can build sustainable legacies. According to

van der Schalk, Australia lacks a robust national chemical complex to

turn energy from natural gas to downstream projects, a void which

Uhde Shedden and ThyssenKrupp technologies can fill. Having pre-

viously managed Uhde Shedden in Thailand, he admires Thailand’s

ability to turn natural gas into specialty chemicals through a serious

of processing stages whereby converting several dollars per giga-

joule of gas to thousands of dollars per ton of chemical product.

Another Achilles heel of Australian oil and gas, and potential

Uhde Shedden breakthrough, is the unanswered question of utiliz-

ing salt in water that is co-produced with CSG. “We are inter-

ested in finding those solutions since part of our business involves

understanding how to turn salt into chlorine through the technology

of our parent company. We are looking at how to develop solu-

tions that deal with salt and convert it to a potentially marketable

product.”

More than wishful thinking these technological revolutions have

tangible inroads through synergies with parent company ThyssenK-

rupp’s knowledge and expertise. “Because we are part of a larger

conglomerate we are looking at how to integrate other ‘family

company’ expertise into our solutions. We are always trying to look

for a unique problem and determine the issue at play.”

A big stimulus for new technologies is the potential introduction

of Australia’s much-mooted but still elusive carbon tax which many

believe will provide investment certainty. Until that comes, however,

Australian companies are taking the lead in creating new markets

and forging new trends.

Pandora’s Box“All I wanted to do was produce facilities and service our customers

in a more professional manner than what I had seen in the past,”

admits Peter Ramsey, founder and managing director of The GLP

Group (GLP). “My initial vision was to move into larger projects in

alternative energy. However, with the picture being drawn up about

the energy boom we quickly got involved with natural gas process-

ing.” The pinnacle of that trajectory was launched in February

2 questions about LNG to David Dennison, managing director – Wood Mackenzie – Australia

Do you think that Australia’s gas con-nectivity to foreign markets and the true globalization of LNG will eventually lead to pricing parity between Atlantic and Pacific Basin LNG?

The key question on peoples’ minds will instead be, “what will happen to gas prices in Australia?” Anyone who has a gas /LNG project on the eastern side of Australia exposes themselves to oil price linkages. We have a positive view on oil prices in the medium to long term therefore having an attractive LNG project in eastern Australia

and exposing yourself to international gas pricing with its inherent oil price link would have its appeal.

The global LNG market has many lump-sum projects coming on stream . Considering increasing supply, voracious Asian demand, and declining LNG pro-duction out of Southeast Asia over the next decade, is LNG a buyer’s market or a seller’s market?

Actually we see the market is quite well balanced. We have however seen prices

come off the highs of 2007/08 and there appears to be downward pressure on prices for proponents of the CSG to LNG projects versus the more conventional. The key issue is around cost inflation and the challenge to the more recent projects is to deliver on time and as close to budget as possible. The LNG business is cyclical in nature and not so long ago the race was on to fill the perceived shortfall of gas in the large US gas market. Subsequently we saw the meteoric rise of unconventional gas that has negated the pressing need for LNG into North America.


with the opening of Australia’s

first micro-LNG plant in Tasma-

nia, constructed by GLP. Using

BOC/Linde’s liquefying phase

technology, the country’s flagship

micro-LNG plant will provide fuel

for over 120 natural gas-powered

heavy vehicles in the state.

Initially looking to import units

from overseas, BOC recognized

GLP’s engineering flexibility and

ultimately contracted with the family-owned company to design,

build, and commission the Westbury Micro-LNG plant. According to

Ramsey, while GLP originally designed the plant for 50 tons per day

of output, recent runs have pushed capacity up to 55 tons per day.

“This can be attributed to our optimized process plant design and

careful quality control during construction,” he notes.

As CSG-to-LNG projects break barriers in size and scale, BOC and

GLP are proving that micro-LNG has boundless potential to usher in a

mega-trend for transport fuels. With proven technology, micro-LNG

Process Plant Solutions ï LNG Plants ï CO2 Capture

ï Clean Fuel Technology

ï Scrubbers

ï Natural Gas Dehydration and Fuel Gas Conditioning

Engineered Products

ï Demisters

ï Internals

Vessel Internals ï Mist Eliminators

ï Ejectors and Eductors

Process Materials ï Catalysts Absorbents

ï Ceramic and Alumina Supports

Design

Consult

Construct

Install

Commission

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www.glp.com.auPhone:Fax:Email:

(03) 9335 9000(03) 9334 [email protected]

CarGLPRev_OGFJ_1108 1 7/22/11 10:19 AM

is currently used for long haul transport applications. Ramsey, how-

ever, believes that future LNG plants will be able to service any fuel

consuming commercial transport. “The diesel market in particular

will dry up in 5-10 years especially if India and China continue rapid

energy consumption growth. The mining sector sees the benefit to

convert from diesel to LNG with the idea of having a central LNG

processing facility that links to satellite stations for fuel dispatch. I

believe that this is where the micro LNG market is headed in the

future for Australia.” Beyond Australia Ramsey sees micro-LNG as

greatly beneficial for countries that cannot afford to build extensive

gas pipeline networks. “It is much cheaper to build a central micro

LNG processing facility and distribute the LNG by tanker trucks, and

get those areas to convert their transport to LNG.”

As one Melbourne-based engineering executive confident in

the country’s ability to continuously break new grounds, stated, “I

like to think of Australians as innovative because we challenge the

norm. We are an isolated country so we must be ingenuous. When

people think of Australia I would like for them to think ‘innovative,

thorough, and well built.” The degree of innovation coming out of

Victoria indeed justifies this Aussie assessment.

Peter Ramsey, Managing Director, GLP

email: [email protected]

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