❓ Minister discusses the potential significance of AWE Limited's gas find at Dongara, highlighting its benefits for WA's economy and energy security, while also criticising anti-fracking sentiments.
AnsweredQoN 685Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
AWE LIMITED — DONGARA GAS
685. Mr R.S. LOVE to the
Minister for Mines and Petroleum:
Can the minister please explain to the house the potential
significance of AWE Limited's recent gas find at Dongara?
685. Mr R.S. LOVE to the
Minister for Mines and Petroleum:
Can the minister please explain to the house the potential
significance of AWE Limited's recent gas find at Dongara?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Moore for a great question. I know
that there are a number of potential gas fields in the member's electorate,
particularly in the Perth Basin.
There are significant onshore gas reserves in Western
Australia and their future development potentially will have great benefits for
Western Australia's economic prosperity and energy security for the
future. Assessment of the shale gas potential around the whole world suggests
that WA has about 288 trillion cubic feet. That is two times the amount of gas
that is off our coast. A trillion cubic feet does not mean much to people, so I
will give an explanation. One trillion cubic feet of gas provides enough power
to supply a city with a population of one million people for 20 years. For a
city such as Perth that has a population of around two million people, one
trillion cubic feet supplies energy for 10 years. The gas fields in Western
Australia could potentially supply the City of Perth for 3 000 years. That
gives an indication of how big the gas fields are. AWE recently announced that
its drilling at the Senecio-3 well, which is about seven kilometres east of its
Dongara gas plant and about 14 kilometres from Dongara, has shown some very
positive results. I will not be too specific, because the information can be
sensitive to the stock exchange. The drilling went to about 3.4 kilometres. It
went through the Dongara Woogina sedimentary rock formation and there were very
good results between 2.4 kilometres and 3.3 kilometres. The drilling
information and environmental plan are available on the Department of Mines and
Petroleum website. Early indications are very optimistic and there may be
sufficient gas to replace the current Dongara gas field. Since the new field is
only seven kilometres from the Dongara gas plant it has added value, because it
is easy to deliver the gas to Perth. Also, another interesting fact about the
gas find is that the volume and the pressure indicate that the gas may be able
to be extracted without fracturing the basin. That is all very good news. It is also worth noting that AWE
Limited may not have ever had the opportunity to explore for this gas if the
Greens and the conservation movement had had their way. One thing we have to
realise about exploration is that quite often when we are exploring for
something, we find something else. The information we get from exploration is valuable information and it is stored by
the Geological Survey of Western Australia. The information is important to us.
I understand that in a few weeks the WA Labor Party will determine its position
on fracking, and I hope that it realises the importance of our onshore gas reserves
and our future economic growth. It is disappointing that whenever anyone brings
up the benefits of fracking, they get pilloried by the Greens. Business News reporter Mark Pownall
recently wrote —
The anti-fracking brigade likes to
dress up myths and fallacies and pretend it is science.
Unfortunately, he was inundated with
emails criticising him for making that statement. The conservation movement is
playing the person and not the science. The Liberal–National government
supports the gas industry and we look forward to finding out the final
Senecio-3 drilling results.
that there are a number of potential gas fields in the member's electorate,
particularly in the Perth Basin.
There are significant onshore gas reserves in Western
Australia and their future development potentially will have great benefits for
Western Australia's economic prosperity and energy security for the
future. Assessment of the shale gas potential around the whole world suggests
that WA has about 288 trillion cubic feet. That is two times the amount of gas
that is off our coast. A trillion cubic feet does not mean much to people, so I
will give an explanation. One trillion cubic feet of gas provides enough power
to supply a city with a population of one million people for 20 years. For a
city such as Perth that has a population of around two million people, one
trillion cubic feet supplies energy for 10 years. The gas fields in Western
Australia could potentially supply the City of Perth for 3 000 years. That
gives an indication of how big the gas fields are. AWE recently announced that
its drilling at the Senecio-3 well, which is about seven kilometres east of its
Dongara gas plant and about 14 kilometres from Dongara, has shown some very
positive results. I will not be too specific, because the information can be
sensitive to the stock exchange. The drilling went to about 3.4 kilometres. It
went through the Dongara Woogina sedimentary rock formation and there were very
good results between 2.4 kilometres and 3.3 kilometres. The drilling
information and environmental plan are available on the Department of Mines and
Petroleum website. Early indications are very optimistic and there may be
sufficient gas to replace the current Dongara gas field. Since the new field is
only seven kilometres from the Dongara gas plant it has added value, because it
is easy to deliver the gas to Perth. Also, another interesting fact about the
gas find is that the volume and the pressure indicate that the gas may be able
to be extracted without fracturing the basin. That is all very good news. It is also worth noting that AWE
Limited may not have ever had the opportunity to explore for this gas if the
Greens and the conservation movement had had their way. One thing we have to
realise about exploration is that quite often when we are exploring for
something, we find something else. The information we get from exploration is valuable information and it is stored by
the Geological Survey of Western Australia. The information is important to us.
I understand that in a few weeks the WA Labor Party will determine its position
on fracking, and I hope that it realises the importance of our onshore gas reserves
and our future economic growth. It is disappointing that whenever anyone brings
up the benefits of fracking, they get pilloried by the Greens. Business News reporter Mark Pownall
recently wrote —
The anti-fracking brigade likes to
dress up myths and fallacies and pretend it is science.
Unfortunately, he was inundated with
emails criticising him for making that statement. The conservation movement is
playing the person and not the science. The Liberal–National government
supports the gas industry and we look forward to finding out the final
Senecio-3 drilling results.
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