LNG co’s to share schedule

THE competition watchdog has asked operators of six liquefied natural gas projects to publicly disclose information they share with each other on maintenance schedules.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission yesterday said it would allow the four companies involved to co-ordinate maintenance activities, but imposed the public disclosure condition.

US titan Chevron, Japan’s Inpex, The Netherlands’ Royal Dutch Shell and Australian group Woodside Petroleum are affected by the announcement, which affects LNG sites in Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

The co-operation would reduce concurrent work at their facilities, helping improve efficiency and maximising LNG production, ACCC chairman Rod Sims said. But he cautioned that “if producers become aware of each other’s LNG facility shutdowns as part of this agreement, this information might give them an advantage in gas trading markets”.

All the projects were focused largely on exports but some were capable of diverting supplies to wholesale domestic markets, Mr Sims said.

The four companies will operate six LNG projects between them.

The companies had sought authorisation last September to co-ordinate activities for a 10-year period, given that they competed for a limited pool of skilled contractors and specialised equipment to conduct scheduled maintenance.

However, the ACCC has only given authorisation for five years, citing uncertainty over the impact on related markets. Woodside Petroleum shares fell 0.4 per cent, or 11¢, yesterday to close at $28.50.