The Rising Influence of Rising Affluence

[DewDiligence]

Gorgon LNG Project Clears Final Hurlde

http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idAFSYD44598720090817

›Mon Aug 17, 2009 5:16am EDT

CANBERRA, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Australia's $50 billion ($41.3 billion) Gorgon liquefied natural gas project cleared another hurdle on Monday, when the national and Western Australian state government agreed to accept joint liability for storing carbon dioxide from the scheme.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the two governments would accept any liabilities arising from the carbon storage in geological formations under Barrow Island, off the Western Australian coast.

"The Commonwealth's decision to accept a share of the long term liability for CO2 storage acknowledges the Gorgon LNG project's scale and significance to the Australian economy," Rudd said in a statement.

Chevron holds a 50 percent stake and is the operator of the project, while Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Exxon Mobil Corp each hold 25 percent.

On August 10, the Western Australia state government granted environmental approval for the project, leaving the national government to finalise its own environmental approval process.

The project was originally expected to cost A$11 billion, but the state government has estimated the scaled-up project could end up costing A$50 billion. ($1=A$1.21)‹