Media Release: Oil and gas industry details safeguard mechanism reform priorities

Australia’s oil and gas industry has revealed its priorities for reform of the Safeguard Mechanism to ensure the fastest emission reductions on the path to net zero at the lowest cost to the economy.

The Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association (APPEA) today said natural gas would play a key role in a cleaner energy future – backing up renewables in electricity while facilitating hydrogen and decarbonisation tools like carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS).

APPEA Chief Executive Samantha McCulloch said: “The industry is committed to net zero across the economy by 2050 and will play a central role in getting there having already announced billions of dollars of investment in decarbonisation measures.

“APPEA supports national climate change policy that provides a signal to the economy to drive the transition and facilitate investment in emissions reductions and net zero technology.”

Releasing its response to the Safeguard Mechanism Reforms paper, APPEA recommended:

• The Mechanism be responsive to the operational, technical, and economic realities and timeframes of deep industrial emissions reductions and provide the flexibility necessary to drive step-change technologies such as CCUS.

• Access to sufficient credible and affordable offsets, including international ones, be ensured.
• Emissions-intensive, trade-exposed industries must be supported in a way that maintains international competitiveness and prevents carbon leakage.
• Deploying the technological building blocks for decarbonisation – CO₂ transport and storage, low-carbon hydrogen, and firmed renewable energy – in key industrial hubs.

Ms McCulloch said Labor’s pledge to protect trade-exposed sectors like LNG exports must be kept.

“It is imperative that Australia retains its competitive global position and that gas can continue to power Australia’s and our region’s economy in a cleaner energy future,” she said.

“The value of our LNG exports is shown in the $9 billion of extra government revenues forecast this financial year. That’s around $14 billion helping fund state and federal public services and infrastructure like roads, schools and hospitals.”

Ms McCulloch said the sector would work with the government towards our shared net zero goals.

“We aim to ensure the most effective, flexible and sustainable design and implementation of the Safeguard Mechanism to get us to net zero,” she said.

Attachment: APPEA Safeguard Mechanism Submission

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