Royal Dutch Shell said that its QGC joint venture will drill 250 new gas wells in the Western Downs region of Queensland, Australia during 2019 and 2020.
Image: Shell’s QGC venture in Australia will drill 250 new gas wells in Queensland. Photo: courtesy of P.L. van Till at nl.wikipedia.
The drilling of the new gas wells is expected to help the company meet the gas supply needs of both domestic and export customers for the coming 30 years.
Named as Project Goog-a-binge, the new gas wells drilling project will be predominantly carried out in the Iman traditional territory.
Shell revealed that the drilled gas wells will connect to existing QGC gas processing plants near Wandoan, Miles, Chinchilla and Tara to deliver nearly 930 petajoules of gas to market in the next 30 years.
Project Goog-a-binge is also expected to create or sustain up to 350 jobs for the QGC venture, which currently employs nearly 1,000 people in Queensland.
QGC is expected to begin pre-construction and site preparation activities at certain sites in November. It plans to start drilling the new gas wells from January 2019 through to December 2019.
Shell, through the QGC venture has spent $140m in the first half of this year in Toowoomba and Surat Basin communities on goods and services in support of its existing operations.
Queensland Mines Minister Anthony Lynham said: “Queensland is the nation’s energy powerhouse, and we continue to do the heavy lifting on gas production and policy. This latest expansion plan will help ensure sustained gas supply to domestic customers as well as royalties to fund frontline services across the state.
“Most importantly, it will pump millions of dollars into local household budgets, local stores and local businesses for the next 30 years.”
Currently, Shell claims that it meets about 60% of the domestic gas demand in Queensland through the QGC joint venture and Arrow Energy, which it acquired alongside PetroChina in 2010.
The company further claimed that its continued investment reflects its commitment to supply the domestic market and boosting Australia’s reputation as a global liquified natural gas supplier.
The drilling of the new gas wells will be subject to receipt of approvals from both the Australian and the Queensland governments.