Woodside's Seismic Survey Plan for Scarborough Project Blocked by Australian Court

By David Winning

SYDNEY--Woodside Energy's plan to conduct a seismic survey at a big natural-gas field offshore Western Australia has run into trouble after a judge on Thursday invalidated the offshore-energy regulator's approval for blasting to take place.

The case was brought by Raelene Cooper, an indigenous elder of the Mardudhunera tribe, who claimed that the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority, or Nopsema, incorrectly exercised its powers when greenlighting the environmental plan for the seismic survey off the coast of the Pilbara region. That was because Nopsema attached a condition that Woodside consult more with representatives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander bodies before the seismic survey began.

Justice Craig Colvin ruled in favor of Cooper, as regulations state that consultations must be completed before the environmental plan is submitted to the regulator.

Thursday's decision is the latest setback for a major Australian company seeking to develop large reserves of natural gas in Australian waters that are culturally significant for indigenous groups.

Last year, Santos suffered a major setback when a judge threw out Nopsema's approval of the company's environmental plan to drill for natural gas in the Barossa gas field, about 85 miles off the coast of the Tiwi Islands near Darwin. That case was brought by Dennis Tipakalippa, an indigenous leader on the islands who argued that the regulator shouldn't have approved the drilling because Santos didn't properly consult his clan on its impact.

Woodside hopes to carry out the seismic survey as part of its Scarborough natural-gas development, which aims to produce natural gas around 233 miles off the Western Australia coast and transport it to the Pluto facility where it would be converted to liquefied natural gas for export.

Perth-based Woodside had said in August that the Scarborough project was 38% complete. It is aiming to export its first LNG cargo in 2026.

Responding to the court judgement, a Woodside spokesperson said the company would continue to work with Nopsema to have an accepted environmental plan in place before commencing the seismic survey.

"The decision did not in any way criticize any action by Woodside," the spokesperson said. "We have consulted extensively on our environment plans, dedicating time and effort so our approach to environmental management and environmental-plan consultation meets our current understanding of regulatory requirements and standards."

Woodside is continuing to engage with relevant stakeholders on planning for the seismic survey and other environmental plans for its projects, the spokesperson added.

A Nopsema spokesperson said the regulator recognizes the important role that First Nations people have in giving input to, and participating in, the protection of the environment and cultural heritage.

"Nopsema was not reasonably satisfied that all environmental risks and impacts had been identified and therefore the Scarborough seismic environment plan could not be accepted without applying conditions," the spokesperson said.

Write to David Winning at david.winning@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 28, 2023 01:01 ET (05:01 GMT)

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