Media release: Gas industry investment and technology helping reduce emissions

The voice of Australia’s oil and gas industry said today’s announcement by Chevron Australia that it is close to achieving five million tonnes of greenhouse gas (carbon dioxide equivalent, CO2e) injected at its Gorgon natural gas facility shows the industry is continuing to walk the walk when it comes to reducing emissions.

APPEA Chief Executive Andrew McConville said Chevron’s announcement is just another example of the industry making the real investments and delivering the real technology to reduce emissions.

“Our industry is walking the walk when it comes to reducing emissions. Injecting five million tonnes of CO2e is equivalent to taking more than 1.6 million passenger vehicles off Australia’s roads for a year,” Mr McConville said.

“The Australian oil and gas industry is a world leader in the practical deployment of carbon capture and storage. In Australia, the oil and gas industry has been at the leading edge of researching and deploying CCS and greenhouse gas storage technologies.

“Natural gas with CCS is a pathway to a large-scale clean hydrogen industry.”

“Australia’s LNG export success means the Australian upstream oil and gas industry has the technology, expertise, commercial and trade relationships to further develop CCS and make hydrogen exports a reality.

“Chevron’s announcement is on top of all the work our industry is already doing to combat climate change. The Australian Government estimates Australia’s LNG has the potential to lower emissions in LNG importing countries by around 170 million tonnes CO2- each year by providing an alternative to higher emissions fuels – the equivalent of almost one-third of Australia’s total annual emissions.

“CCS shows that technology can be used to further reduce Australia’s emissions and allows our industry to keep supplying electricity generation and being used for products such as clothes, computers, phones, fertilisers and vital medical equipment such as heart valves.”

The need for gas for a cleaner energy future is publicly supported by the United Nations, CSIRO, Australia’s Chief Scientist, the Australian Energy Market Operator, the Australian Energy Market Commission, the former Chief Scientist of NSW, the Independent Planning Commission and the Australian Council of Learned Academies.

A range of case studies of the way in which the industry is taking practical action to support emissions reductions across the industry supply chain and leading research into innovative emissions reduction activities is highlighted in APPEA’s Industry Action on Emissions Reduction report.

Read the media release