Australia Backs $47 Billion Gas Sector’s Role in Transition
- The government aims to develop resources to avoid shortfall
- Natural gas to play an important role through 2050 and beyond
An LNG ship refuels at a facility in Karratha, Western Australia.
Photographer: Carla Gottgens/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Australia is calling for the development of new natural gas resources to ensure it remains affordable and the nation continues as a major exporter, the latest shift by the center-left Labor government toward greater support for the fossil fuel.
The government released a long-term framework, called the Future Gas Strategy, on Thursday to establish gas’s role in the transition to cleaner energy, as it looks to meet a target for net zero by 2050. That will open it up to criticism to pandering to the A$72 billion ($47 billion) liquefied natural gas export industry, which argues that the nation faces a domestic shortfall as new projects have been stalled by onerous regulations.