QRC welcomes collaborative approach to domestic gas supply

THE Queensland Resources Council (QRC) has welcomed the Palaszczuk Government’s granting of an Authority to Prospect to Central Petroleum for exploration in the Surat Basin. 

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said Central Petroleum would supply gas for domestic use only to the State’s largest manufacturer Incitec Pivot to support the employment of 400 workers and power the Gibson Island fertiliser plant.

“Once again we see Queensland holding the key to sustaining a long-term future for East Coast jobs and industries,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“This is another example of Queensland getting on with the job to responsibly increase gas supply, drive down prices and secure jobs.

“I applaud the Palaszczuk Government’s innovative approach to delivering domestic gas and industry for partnering together to boost the State’s manufacturing industry.”

Mr Macfarlane said today’s announcement comes six months after Central Petroleum was announced as a successful tenderer as part of the Queensland Government’s Land Release Program.

“Queensland is the case study that works, and other states ignore it at their peril,” he said.

“New South Wales and Victoria can’t expect Queensland to continue to supply, and subsidise, their own gas users when each of those states has either a handbrake or a full-blown ban on any gas development.”

The QRC claims Queensland's resources sector now provides one in every six dollars in the Queensland economy, sustains one in eight Queensland jobs, and supports more than 16,400 businesses across the State all from 0.1 percent of Queensland’s land mass.

www.qrc.org.au

ends