Chevron is locking in plans to run the massive Gorgon LNG plant for decades to come, with drilling on the first of seven new gas fields slated to start in 2026.
The Gorgon plant on Barrow Island was built to ship gas for decades and the company has long-planned to bring on further fields as older reserves run down.
Last year, The West Australian revealed about $12 billion would be spent on this process over the next 15 years.
The US-based company has applied to the offshore regulator to get moving on the next series of developments off the Pilbara coast.
Chevron and partners hope to start drilling at the Geryon and Eurytion fields in the September quarter of 2026, with gas pumping from 2028.
The order of the next projects is unclear but the company plans to eventually drill the Chandon, Chrysaor, Dionysus, Semele and West Tryal Rocks reserves and pipe their gas to the Gorgon plant.
That follows two backfill developments which have already commenced — Gorgon stage two and the Jansz-Io Compression project.
Chevron’s partners at Gorgon include industry super-majors ExxonMobil and Shell.
“As Gorgon and Jansz-Io fields deplete over time, developing backfill fields represents the next phase of the Gorgon Project – helping to maintain gas production for Western Australia and the broader Asia-Pacific region, and supporting the ongoing economic benefits that reliable gas supply brings,” a spokesman for Chevron said.
“The development of backfill fields was envisaged in the initial Gorgon project approvals and will not increase the life or capacity of the current Gorgon gas processing facilities beyond existing approvals.”
The proposal has been released for public comment by the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority.
The plans come amid tension over the use of retention leases for offshore gas projects. The DomGas Alliance has called on the Federal Government to make big energy companies speed up development of their fields.
Earlier on Friday, Chevron announced it had paid $3.5 billion of company tax in 2023. That followed from $4.2b in 2022.
It means the business is easily among the country’s top 20 biggest taxpayers.
“It’s a significant contribution and one we’re proud of making,” a spokesman said.
“By paying our fair share of tax, we’re helping the Australian Government pay for the things that matter, like healthcare, cost of living relief, and supporting those who need it most.”
Payments of the Petroleum Resources Rent Tax are still expected to start this financial year, the spokesman told The West Australian.