Rising costs and low returns are testing Australia’s gas players
The country’s major energy firms are looking further afield for growth
Shell warned in June that rising costs and low returns mean only “a fraction” of the large liquefied natural gas (LNG) export projects in Australia and elsewhere will actually get built. Offshore Australia, Shell will hook-up the world’s first floating LNG (FLNG) liquefaction vessel, named Prelude, the largest maritime vessel ever built. But this hasn’t prevented the Anglo-Dutch supermajor from warning that other mega-projects, which once promised big returns, will struggle to move forward. “There is always so much talk about these big LNG projects around the world, but only a small fraction of them will get built,” Matthias Bichsel, Shell’s director of projects and technology told Reuters i
Also in this section
23 April 2026
The addition of an oil pipeline to the Power of Siberia 2 gas project could ensure deliveries of Russian oil to China, materially shorten logistics lines between West Siberia and final customers, and—amid disruption in the Strait of Hormuz—offer a land-based export route that reduces exposure to maritime chokepoints
23 April 2026
There is a clear push to bolster exports to Asia amid uncertainty around its North American neighbour, but there are limits to the benefits from the energy crisis
23 April 2026
Shell made the play-opening discovery in Namibia’s Orange basin back in 2022, but its next well could decide whether the project can actually be commercialised
22 April 2026
The failure of OMV Petrom’s keenly watched exploration campaign at Bulgaria’s Han Asparuh block highlights the Black Sea’s uneven track record, despite major successes like Neptun Deep and Sakarya
