APA Group has detailed plans for a near-$2 billion expansion of its east coast gas grid in a bid to close off what is has described as a disastrous option of importing LNG to meet demand for the fuel in the country’s south-east.

But only $75 million of the investment has been sanctioned so far by the gas pipeline giant, and the company is depending on signing up customers for the new capacity to proceed with the rest. The project, along with other big-ticket transmission projects planned in Western Australia’s Pilbara region, could be funded partly through partnerships and asset sales.