The prospect of a drawn-out period of rock-bottom oil prices has sharpened the focus on high-cost fields that might be shut down if they become uneconomic, with some smaller fields in Western Australia seen in the firing line.

While they are lower down the list than some high-cost operations in China, Wood Mackenzie has singled out Triangle Energy's Cliff Head field off the coast of Dongara and Buru Energy's onshore Ungani field in the south-west Kimberley region as likely to struggle if the slump continues for long.