Five CSG development projects are currently planned in the Maranoa-Balonne-Condamine subregion. Three have been approved and are currently under construction, one is awaiting financial approval, and one is in planning stages with the EIS currently being prepared.
The projects under construction are the Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG) Project operated by Origin Energy Limited, the Gladstone LNG (GLNG) Project operated by Santos Ltd, and the Queensland Curtis LNG (QCLNG) Project operated by QGC Pty Limited (a BG Group business). These are large‑scale projects that each include several CSG field developments targeting the Walloon Coal Measures in the Surat Basin. The gas produced from these projects is intended for the export market in the form of LNG. Conversion to LNG occurs in facilities on Curtis Island, near Gladstone, to which it is transported via pipelines. Santos GLNG is also planning the Gladstone LNG Gas Field Development (GLNG GFD) which represents an extension to their GLNG Project. The GLNG GFD Project involves further development of Santos GLNG’s existing CSG developments as well as the development of new tenements (Santos, 2012).
Arrow Energy Pty Ltd’s Stratheden gas field, a comparatively small scale project, is expected to supply gas to the domestic market. The gas field has been drilled and commissioned (Arrow Energy, 2014) and is currently in a water production stage to enable commercial gas production (Arrow Energy, 2014, pers. comm.).
The proposed Surat Gas Project (SGP) is another large-scale gas field development to supply CSG for LNG production on Curtis Island and export to global markets. The gas fields are owned and operated by Arrow Energy. State and Australian Government approval was received in 2013. A decision to proceed with the SGP and the timing of that decision are matters of Arrow Energy’s shareholders Royal Dutch Shell plc and PetroChina Company Limited. Arrow Energy is looking at multiple opportunities, including collaboration with one or more of the existing LNG projects, to develop its gas resource (Arrow Energy, 2014, pers. comm.).
A comparatively small CSG development is Origin Energy’s proposed Ironbark Project. The project location is in ATP 788 between the towns of Tara in the south, Dalby to the east, and Chinchilla to the north. An EIS is in preparation.
The projects are summarised in Table 17. It is important to note that not all the gas field developments of the large-scale CSG projects are in the Maranoa-Balonne-Condamine subregion. The reserves presented in Table 17 are representative of CSG reserves of the Maranoa-Balonne-Condamine subregion only. To determine these, the reserves of the individual petroleum tenures comprising the project area located in the Maranoa-Balonne-Condamine subregion were summed. The data were taken from the reserves report published by the Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mines (DNRM, 2014). Only proved plus probable (2P) reserves are presented.
Table 17 Catalogue of potential coal seam gas resource developments in the Maranoa-Balonne-Condamine subregion
Project name |
Company |
Longitude |
Latitude |
Record datea |
2P coal seam gas reservesb (PJ) |
Status of EISc
|
Notes |
Australia Pacific LNG |
Australia Pacific LNG Pty Limited |
150.15° |
–27° |
31 Dec 2013 |
8972 (DNRM, 2014) |
EIS approved |
Under construction. Forecast Phase 1 production: 1,200 TJ/d (Origin Energy, 2013). The project currently comprises two LNG trains with a capacity of 4.5 Mt/year each (Origin Energy, 2013). The project may have up to four LNG trains (APLNG, 2010) |
Gladstone LNG / Gladstone LNG Gas Field Development (GLNG GFD) |
Santos GLNG Pty Ltd |
149° |
–26.4° |
31 Dec 2013 |
2745 / 2807d (DNRM, 2014) |
EIS approved / EIS in preparation
|
Under construction. The GLNG Project comprises two LNG trains with a combined capacity of 7.8 Mt/year (Santos, 2014). The GLNG GFD Project is an extension to the GLNG Project and involves CSG development within already approved and additional tenements (Santos, 2012) |
Ironbark |
Origin Energy Limited |
150.25° |
–27.1° |
30 Jun 2014 |
259 (Origin Energy, 2014) |
EIS in preparation |
Max estimated production rate: 120 TJ/d for about 40 years (Origin Energy, 2011) |
Queensland Curtis LNG |
QGC Pty Limited (BG Group) |
150.2° |
–27° |
31 Dec 2013 |
9499 (DNRM, 2014) |
EIS approved |
Under construction. 1414 TJ/d required for two LNG trains with a combined capacity of 8.5 Mt/year (QGC, 2009) |
Stratheden |
Arrow Energy Pty Ltd |
151.02 |
–27.12 |
31 Dec 2013 |
285 (DNRM, 2014) |
EIS approved |
Gas field has been drilled and commissioned (Arrow Energy, 2014) |
Surat Gas Project |
Arrow Energy Pty Ltd |
151° |
–27.1° |
31 Dec 2013 |
6872 (DNRM, 2014) |
EIS approved |
No financial commitment as of August 2014. Forecast production: 1215 TJ/d for about 35 years (Arrow Energy, 2013) |
aThe record date is the most recent date for updated coal seam gas resource numbers
bThe Petroleum Resource Management System of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (PRMS-SPE) code 2P refers to estimated quantities of proved plus probable reserves, 3P refers to proved plus probable plus possible
cThe status of the project within an environmental impact statement (EIS): pre-EIS, EIS in preparation, EIS submitted, EIS closed, supplementary EIS and EIS approved
dThe 2P reserves of the GLNG GFD Project are inclusive of the 2P reserves of the GLNG Project
LNG = liquefied natural gas
Product Finalisation date
- 1.2.1 Available coal and coal seam gas resources
- 1.2.2 Current activity and tenements
- 1.2.3 Proposals and exploration
- 1.2.4 Catalogue of potential resource developments
- Citation
- Acknowledgements
- Contributors to the Technical Programme
- About this technical product