The Australian government said that it has reached an agreement with Asset Energy to resolve an ongoing litigation pertaining to Petroleum Export Permit 11 (PEP-11), a gas exploration block located off the New South Wales (NSW) coast.
In this regard, the parties have submitted consent orders to the Federal Court of Australia to end their dispute without the need for a trial.
In March 2022, Asset Energy’s applications for the PEP-11 permit were rejected by the Commonwealth-New South Wales Offshore Petroleum Joint Authority during the tenure of the Scott Morrison government. Subsequently, the company took the legal route to challenge the then government’s decision.
According to Minister for Resources and Minister for Northern Australia Madeleine King, Asset Energy began proceedings after the revelation that Morrison had secretly sworn himself to the resources portfolio and to four other departments of state. The former Prime Minister did not disclose about it to either his colleagues in the Cabinet or to the public, said King.
Should the Federal Court of Australia accept the proposed consent orders, then Morrison’s decision to reject the PEP-11 applications will be vacated. The permit application will return to the Commonwealth-New South Wales Offshore Petroleum Joint Authority to seek a new decision.
King said: “I assure Australians that any decisions that I take as the Federal Minister for Resources will always be based on sound evidence and in accordance with the law. Australians quite rightly expect this of their elected leaders.
“I am not going to provide an ongoing commentary on future official decisions that come before the Joint Authority, whether in relation to PEP-11 or any other matter.”
Located in the offshore Sydney Basin, the PEP-11 permit is estimated to hold up to 13.2 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) prospective recoverable gas resources.
Asset Energy, which is a fully-owned subsidiary of Advent Energy, has an 85% stake in the offshore exploration permit. The remaining 15% stake is held by Bounty Oil & Gas.
Advent Energy is backed by BPH Energy, which has a 36% stake in the former.
