Stephen Robertson took on the position of Queensland Minister for Natural Resources, Mines and Energy following Premier Anna Bligh’s Cabinet reshuffle earlier this year.

Mr Robertson says “I have twice before held the portfolio spanning natural resource management and mining business, so I am very well acquainted with the scale and diversity of issues.”

He says that within his portfolio it is extremely important to support the development of the LNG industry.

“Exploration and development are the lifeblood of Queensland’s energy industry and the Bligh Government is committed to supporting industry with a comprehensive and evolving policy structure that stimulates exploration and development, creating jobs,” says Mr Robertson.

He points to the granting of tenures required for part of BG/QGC’s coal seam gas (CSG) developments in the Surat Basin as creating approximately 450 jobs from construction to operation.

BG/QGC is undergoing exploration expansion at its CSG fields in order to support its Queensland Curtis LNG Project, which will require a 380 km pipeline leading from the company’s CSG fields to an LNG facility located on Curtis Island, Gladstone.

The Curtis LNG project is one of many CSG to LNG developments proposed for the state.

Mr Robertson sees the emerging LNG industry, to be based primarily in Gladstone, as providing significant opportunities for economic growth.

“Modelling indicates that an industry exporting 28 MMt/a of LNG could create 18,000 jobs in construction and gas field and plant operations, increase gross state product by over $3 billion and provide more than $950 million annually in extra royalty revenue.”

Mr Robertson says that the Queensland Government is working to develop a policy framework that aims to provide a stable environment for the LNG proponents to develop their investments.

The production of CSG for LNG will necessitate the construction of new gas pipelines to service the industry.

“The most significant policy initiative for Queensland’s pipeline industry will be the development of a ‘gas superhighway’ from gas fields in the Bowen and Surat basins to Gladstone.”

The ‘gas superhighway’ was announced as a commitment during the 2009 Queensland Election, and the Government has set aside $30 million to acquire a land corridor 70 km long and 200 m wide to allow construction of a common use pipeline for LNG proponents.

“This initiative will provide maximum efficiency for industry while minimising the environmental impact, which could have resulted from the construction of individual proponent-specific pipelines along dedicated routes,” says Mr Robertson.

Policy pushing the industry

Mr Robertson says that the amount of activity surrounding CSG to LNG projects in the state is largely due to “almost a decade of government policy”, referring to such initiatives as the Queensland Gas Scheme and investment in production and gas-fired electricity generation.

The Queensland Gas Scheme mandates that electricity retailers source at least 13 per cent of their electricity from gas-fired power generation. This has not only meant an increase in gas production, but also an increase in demand for infrastructure to transport the gas to market.

“The gas scheme has facilitated the development of the CSG industry,” says Mr Robertson.

“Over the next decade, it is expected that the role of gas will grow in the state’s energy mix, particularly as the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS) is introduced and becomes a key driver for investment in gas-fired generation.”

Mr Robertson says that the Queensland Government intends to transition the Queensland Gas Scheme into the CPRS once confident that the CPRS provides sufficient incentive for investment in natural gas.

“Should there be further delays in the implementation of the CPRS, the Queensland Government has the authority to increase the target under the Queensland Gas Scheme to 18 per cent,” he says.

“Gas is expected to play a crucial role under the CPRS...Gas represents an ideal ‘transition fuel’ as it can effectively reduce the emissions footprint of electricity generation whilst still allowing for the required levels of reliability.”

CCS and pipeline development

Mr Robertson says that carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies will play a key role in Queensland’s clean energy future.

He says that while CSG production is experiencing rapid growth in the state, coal-fired energy supplies approximately 80 per cent of Queensland’s needs. As such, zero emissions technologies such as CCS need to be developed within the state, and Mr Robertson expects this to be commercially available over the next two decades.

CCS will require the development of pipeline infrastructure to transport carbon emissions to an underground storage site.

The Queensland Government has partnered with the coal industry to demonstrate the feasibility of CCS technology through the ZeroGen Project. A feasibility study is underway at the project to assess the process of capturing carbon dioxide from synthetic gas, then compressing and transporting that carbon dioxide and safely storing it safely underground.

It is planned that the gasification plant will be located adjacent to the existing Stanwell Power Station, 29 km west of Rockhampton in central Queensland. The carbon dioxide will be transported via an approximately 220 km pipeline to underground saline aquifers in the northern Denison Trough, near Emerald.

In August this year, the Government made a submission to the Commonwealth’s $2 billion CCS Flagships Program for funding to support the development of two CCS power stations – the Queensland Government’s 400 MW ZeroGen proposal and the 334 MW Wandoan proposal by GE Energy and Xstrata.

The Queensland Government has also initiated the Carbon Geo-storage Initiative, which will assess Queensland’s geological storage potential by identifying and evaluating geological sites with the potential for long-term, safe and secure carbon storage.

The first stage of the initiative involves a state-wide basin characterisation review, and the second stage will focus on a number of prioritised basins for more detailed review.

The Queensland Government has also enacted the Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2009. The Act facilitates the exploration of potential geological storage sites as well as the actual storage of carbon dioxide.

Exciting times for Queensland

Mr Robertson is excited about the future of the natural gas and pipeline industry in Queensland, saying that the government will support the industries’ further development.

“Ultimately we want to create a more vibrant investment environment in Queensland,” say Mr Robertson.

He says that Queensland is Australia’s fastest growing, most decentralised and most energy-intensive state. Over the next 10 years, Queensland is expected to experience the highest annual energy consumption and peak demand growth rates Australia-wide.

“The emerging LNG industry will dramatically stimulate CSG production in Queensland. Not only will there be massive volumes of gas available for LNG production, but there is also likely to be significant spillover gas available for the domestic market. Production of gas for LNG will necessitate the production of new gas pipelines to service the industry, and the role of gas in electricity generation will continue to grow.”