Beetaloo gas should be part of our low emissions energy policy

Anthony Albanese is focusing on the survival of big parts of the Tasmanian salmon industry but there is a much bigger issue he must tackle before the election.

The recent Sydney blackout warnings and the likelihood that similar threats will hit Melbourne and other parts of the East Coast has highlighted to the nation that the $660bn energy plan being embraced by energy minister Chris Bowen and the states is not going to work.

It will destroy our industry base and prosperity as it sends power prices to the stratosphere.

In my view, there will be a long-term role for nuclear, but that issue becomes a distraction given that much more urgent action is now required.

We must educate our population that gas development can partner renewables and slash emissions at a much lower cost.

Victoria has immense onshore gas reserves, but we can’t wait two years for a possible change in government.

Given the amount of gas Sydney, Melbourne and eastern Australia will require we have only one alternative – develop the vast gas reserves at Beetaloo in the Northern Territory.

The Beetaloo aggregation in the Northern Territory.

For some time I have been alerting readers to the potential of Beetaloo, and it’s now time to incorporate Beetaloo into a low emissions energy policy that will not destroy the nation’s living standards, including current levels of social welfare.

The Beetaloo reserves are at least equal to the Bowen Basin reserves, and maybe a lot larger. Although they are remote, the nation is lucky because the East Coast pipeline network is relatively close and can be connected to Beetaloo for an outlay of around $4bn. Australia’s largest pipeline operator, the APA group, is well-placed to transport the gas and his already working on feasibility studies.

We could build, say, 13 gas fired power stations around the East Coast near existing transmission lines for less than $20bn. These are large figures, but pale into insignificance when compared with the current $660bn plan.

Chris Bowen will meet with state energy ministers later this week in Adelaide and they will need to address these matters:

• The recent blackout warning for Sydney means there is now an urgent issue to address the need for gas power generation quickly. They need a plan.

• The $660bn costs of the current plan means it’s totally unrealistic and must be drastically changed. That includes not just more gas, but also not erecting renewables in remote regions because of the enormous cost of transmission lines and the delays caused by the social upheaval and opposition they create.

• Victorian energy minister Lily D’Ambrosio refuses to develop Victoria’s immense onshore gas and is still in two minds as to whether to restrict the use of gas in cooking. She will need to be told that despite her ban, there can be plenty of gas available for Victoria from Beetaloo

Beetaloo is in three linked areas. One third is owned by Santos, which is now fully on board with developing Beetaloo. Another two areas are owned by Tamboran (NASDAQ-listed) and Empire (ASX-listed). Both companies have large Australian equity.

A key shareholder in each is Texas billionaire Bryan Sheffield and his Daly Waters energy group. Sheffield helped finance the Tamboran purchase of Origin Energy’s sale of its Beetaloo equity. Beetaloo will use the US fracking systems, which involve far fewer wells than the fracking systems used in Queensland.

Beetaloo gas will also supply Darwin, and the reserves are big enough to export either via Darwin or Gladstone.

Beetaloo basin in the Northern Territory.

Australia will need to ensure that there is sufficient gas for the East Coast before exports are allowed, but they will assist in the economics of the project

There will obviously be controversy in developing Beetaloo, but it is so essential for the Australian industrial base and living standards on the East Coast that they will need to be overcome.

It is going to be important not to allow the Australian energy crisis solution to be distracted by the nuclear debate. Gas will come first because it partners well with renewables.

Nuclear is a separate issue as we replace coal.

The current looming crisis is so deep that gas is required urgently and, because it is easily switched off when renewable energies are abundant and back on again when renewables are not generating power, it becomes a perfect partner.

But we have been educating our children that gas is evil, so the transformation of policy will not be easy.