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EnergyQuest™ EnergyQuarterly November 2008
Report
Australia’s east coast gas production hits “all time” record
Monday, 1 December 2008
Surging gas production across the east coast of Australia reached an all time “high” during the latest September quarter, according to an authoritative industry report released today.
Gas production along the eastern seaboard jumped 4.6 per cent in the three months to 30 September to 193 petajoules (PJ), up from 185 PJ in the corresponding period last year.
The September quarter increase continues a trend that has seen total east coast gas production rise from 563 PJ in the 12 months to September 2006 to 667 PJ over the same period to September 2008, an increase of 18.6% in two years.
The report - issued today by energy economics group, EnergyQuest – also showed Proved and Probable east coast gas reserves were up sharply in the latest quarter and have now risen 38% over the past 12 months to 21,600 PJ, or the equivalent of 32 years of current consumption. more pdf 18KB
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Australian Coal Seam Gas 2008: CSG Meets LNG
September 2008 Update
Two months is a long time in Australian coal seam gas, with Origin Energy’s recent announcement of its joint venture with ConocoPhillips.
EnergyQuest has updated its successful report, Australian Coal Seam Gas 2008: CSG Meets LNG to take account of all recent reserves announcements and company developments.
The report provides an up-to-date, comprehensive and independent report on the current state of play and outlook for Australian CSG.
Download brochure pdf 180KB.
EnergyQuest™ EnergyQuarterly August 2008 Report
Australia’s booming coal seam gas sector pushes 2007-08 production to record
2 September 08
- Coal seam gas production up 39% in 2007-08
- CSG reserves up 87%
- Oil production down
- Australia petroleum trade deficit passes $10 billion
The report shows massive growth in coal seam gas (CSG) reserves in Queensland and NSW during the year.
A year ago total proved and probable (2P) CSG reserves were 6,600 PJ, about ten times annual east coast demand. Reserves have since almost doubled to 12,400 PJ (2P).
“The development of Australia’s CSG reserves continues apace and demand remains very strong,” EnergyQuest CEO, Dr Graeme Bethune, said today.
more pdf 32KB
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New Biofuels Report
What is the current position of biofuels in Australia?
A new report from APAC Biofuel Consultants (a joint venture of EnergyQuest and Ecco Consulting) has found that the ethanol industry is establishing itself on a sustainable basis.
Biodiesel has had numerous challenges but is now getting back on its feet.
The report, Australian Biofuels 2008, provides a review of all commercial developments and policies affecting the Australian industry over the past 12 months, including a summary of all Australian biofuel projects and companies, world trends, government policies, mandates, biofuel economics and feedstock trends, together with forecasts of industry capacity, updated to end June, 2008.
For further details download the brochure or email: study@apacbiofuel.com.au
Download brochure pdf 167KB.
New EnergyQuest Coal Seam Gas Report
"Australian Coal Seam Gas 2008"
Coal Seam Gas is now the hottest part of the Australian gas sector and is generating international interest.
LNG proposals are gaining in credibility:
- BG Group has joined QGC in their Gladstone LNG project.
- BG Group has bid for Origin Energy.
- Petronas has joined the Santos LNG project and in doing so has set new benchmarks for CSM value.
- Origin has knocked back the BG bid but is itself embracing LNG.
- Shell has formed an LNG alliance with Arrow Energy.
At the same time an Emissions Trading Scheme is expected from 2010, which will increase the demand for gas for power generation in eastern Australia.
Australian Coal Seam Gas 2008 provides an up-to-date, comprehensive and independent report on the current state of play and outlook for Australian CSG.
Available now. For further details: csg@energyquest.com.au
Download brochure pdf 200KB.
AUSTRALIAN MOTORISTS BUYING LESS PETROL
AS RECORD PRICES TAKE THEIR TOLL
27 May 2008
Motorists are changing their petrol-buying habits in response to Australia’s record petrol prices.
Analysis released today by energy economics group, EnergyQuest, shows that motorists are buying less petrol, and also switching to cheaper varieties of fuel.
However, sales of diesel fuel continue to grow strongly – driven by demand from business and truck owners, who have fewer alternatives for fuel or the ability to reduce the amount of travelling they do.
EnergyQuest today released research revealing that Australian petrol sales fell by 55.7 million litres (1.2%) in the three months to 31 March 2008, compared with the same period last year.
more pdf 24KB
EnergyQuest™ EnergyQuarterly
Australian petroleum production falls 5% in March quarter
Record coal seam methane production (again)
Australian domestic gas prices stay well below LNG prices
Oil production down
27 May 2008
Australian petroleum production slowed in the first three months of 2008 due to sharply lower production of crude oil and natural gas liquids.
A key report – issued today by energy economics group, EnergyQuest - revealed that Australian petroleum production to 31 March 2008 fell 5.1% to 106 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMBOE) - down from 112 MMBOE in the same three-month period last year.
more pdf 32KB
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Booming coal seam gas sector set for further growth
February 2008
In this article published in the February 2008 issue of Petroleum Magazine, EnergyQuest CEO Graeme Bethune reviews the growth of Australian coal seam gas and its exciting growth outlook.
more pdf 998KB
EnergyQuest™ EnergyQuarterly
Australian petroleum production surges to 7-year high
Petrol sales top 19 billion litres – despite higher prices
Challenge for greenhouse targets
25 February 2008
Australian petroleum production reached a seven-year high in 2007 and petrol sales topped more than 19 billion litres, despite high prices at the pumps.
A key report – issued today by energy economics group, EnergyQuest - revealed that Australian petroleum production for 2007 was 467 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMBOE), a 4.6% jump on the previous year and just short of the all-time record of 474 MMBOE in 2000.
And there are no signs that high petrol prices are slowing demand, with Australian petrol sales growing by 1.6% to 19.4 billion litres in the past calendar year.
more pdf 27KB
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Coal seam gas the future
The Courier-Mail
20 November 2007
QUEENSLAND'S coal seam gas industry continues to grow, increasingly replacing supplies of conventional natural gas.
In the year to the end of September, the industry produced 93 petajoules of gas, up 44 per cent from the year earlier, and met about 70 per cent of Queensland's gas needs.
Reserves reached nearly 6600 PJ (proved and probable), with considerable further potential yet to be tested.
Coal seam gas companies Queensland Gas and Arrow Energy are both capitalised at $2 billion and Sunshine Gas is nearly $500 million.
This boom in coal seam gas is attracting a lot of attention.
The seventh annual Coal Seam Gas Conference, organised by the Australian Journal of Mining and which starts today, is expected to attract a record 170 people.
more pdf 16KB
East coast gas production records tumble
EnergyQuest
2 December 2007
Australian east coast gas production set new records in the September quarter.
A key report – issued today by energy advisory group, EnergyQuest - revealed that
production for the quarter was 185 PJ, a 10.2% jump.
Record gas production in Victoria and Queensland underpinned power
generation. more pdf 18KB
Real Oil Price Close to Record
2 December 2007
With the recent surge in oil prices we have had some queries about when it will reach an inflation adjusted record.
On our calculations oil prices reached peak of US$92.45 per barrel (adjusted to 2007 prices) in 1980. Last night’s WTI of US$87.61 per barrel is getting very close. A chart is attached.
Chart pdf 16KB
Huge oil shale deposits provide glimmer of hope for the future
Graeme Bethune
2 October 2007
The Courier-Mail
WITH oil prices reaching a record of more than $US80 a barrel, it is timely that State Cabinet has been considering the McNamara Report on Queensland's vulnerability to rising oil prices.
The report is said to warn of ``massive social dislocation, rising food prices and infrastructure headaches because of rising oil costs.''
But what about Queensland's huge resources of oil shale?
more pdf 19KB
GAS IS THE FUTURE - OIL & GAS - SPECIAL
Nigel Wilson
22 September 2007
The Australian
Booming sales and production prospects are powering the gas industry in Australia, writes Nigel Wilson
HUGE gas deals to supply Japan and China well into the third decade of this century have been the focus of attention in recent weeks. But alongside them has been a statement of probably greater significance for most Australians: the announcement by ExxonMobil that the Bass Strait fields it shares with BHP Billiton are good for at least another 25 to 30 years.
Both scenarios reflect the huge impact sustained high oil prices are having on the confidence of the exploration and production industry, alongside Australia's move towards carbon trading as a means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Bass Strait gas mainly supplies Victoria, but it is increasingly being used in NSW and South Australia as the gas market increases and the transmission network improves to allow for price competition in supplying wholesale customers.
According to Graeme Bethune of consultants EnergyQuest, Australia's oil and gas production continued to grow strongly in the June quarter, driven by stronger gas production on the east coast caused by the drought and higher oil production from new fields.
more pdf 32KB
Biofuel industry to double this year
Nigel Wilson, Energy writer
5 September 2007
The Australian
A REPORT has found Australia's ethanol sector has moved to a more sustainable basis because of the growth in demand and the deferral of some projects.
But biodiesel capacity is still well ahead of demand, resulting in some plants suspending production.
Typically, ethanol produced from wheat or sugar is blended with petrol, while biodiesel can be made from vegetable oil or animal fats, which are substituted for hydrocarbon-based diesel or blended with that product.
The report issued at the Advanced Global Biofuels summit in Bangkok was prepared by energy consultants Mike Cochran and Graeme Bethune.
The report states that, while high oil prices provide an opportunity for biofuels to enter the transport fuel market, producers and world-be producers face major challenges.
These include the difficulties of trying to compete in the lower-value energy market with higher value food commodities.
more pdf 20KB
Australian biofuel capacity growing strongly
4 September 2007
Australia’s capacity to produce biofuels (ethanol and biodiesel) is growing strongly, despite the drought and other challenges.
A key report, released at the Advanced Global Biofuel Summit in Bangkok, reveals that Australian biofuel production capacity is expected to double this year, to over 600 million litres (ML) and could exceed 1,000 ML a year by mid-2009.
more pdf 24KB
brochure & order details (pdf)
Biofuel production capacity grows despite drought - report
4 September 2007
Australian Associated Press Financial News Wire
BIOFUEL ADELAIDE, Sept 4 AAP - Australia's capacity to produce ethanol and biodiesel is gaining strength despite the drought, experts say.
APAC Biofuel Consultants released a report in Bangkok today at the Advanced Global Biofuel Summit which predicts Australian biofuel production capacity will double this year to more than 600 million litres.
more pdf 16KB
EnergyQuest™ EnergyQuarterly
Strong growth in Australian oil & gas production
Tuesday, 28 August 2007
Australian oil and gas production grew strongly in the 12 months to 30 June 2007, reversing the previous year’s trend which saw flat national production.
A key report – issued today by energy advisory group, EnergyQuest - revealed a 10% jump in Australian petroleum production for the past year, reaching 472 million barrels of oil equivalent, due to robust growth in both oil and gas output.
Australian drought drives up east coast gas consumption and prices
National gas production reached 1,661 petajoules (PJ), an increase of 8.9% for the
year.
“The growth in gas production reflects the drought still gripping eastern Australia,
together with continued growth in exports of LNG,” EnergyQuest CEO, Dr Graeme
Bethune, said today.
“In the most recent quarter, gas use for power generation on the east coast more
than doubled to offset the fall in coal-fired generation arising from water restrictions in
Queensland and Victoria,” he said.
“Strong demand for gas has also pushed up wholesale gas prices, with average
Victorian spot prices increasing 42% to $5.02 per gigajoule compared with the
previous June quarter.
“On 18 July this year Victorian spot prices reached $39.99 per gigajole.”
more pdf 24KB
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Australia's oil, gas output climbs 10% in 2006-2007: EnergyQuest
27 August 2007
Platts Commodity News
Australia's oil and gas production grew 10% to 472 million barrels of oil equivalent in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2007, improving on the previous 12 months when output was flat, local consultancy EnergyQuest said Tuesday.
Oil production climbed sharply during the year, rising 16.6% to 129.8 million barrels due to higher production in the Carnarvon Basin offshore Western Australia. The nation's gas production reached 1,661 petajoules for the year, up 8.9% on 2005-2006.
more pdf 17KB
Liquid fuel options for oil put Qld in spotlight
Graeme Bethune
7 August 2007
The Courier-Mail
QUEENSLAND has long been Australia's premier coal-producing state.
However, its other energy resources have been limited. Although Queensland pioneered Australian oil and gas, it's been a relatively small producer compared with Victoria and Western Australia.
The gas situation is now changing quickly with the growth of coal seam methane but what are the prospects for oil?
Australia needs to find more oil as prices reach record levels, production falls and imports rise.
Australian oil production peaked at 260 million barrels in 2000 and last year was down to 160 million barrels, requiring us to import 44 per cent of our liquid fuel needs.
Australia's oil import bill is now twice what we earn from thermal coal exports.
However the chances of finding a new Bass Strait are not good.
Converting shale, coal and gas to liquid fuels is a much surer bet.
That's where Queensland comes in, with bountiful resources of all three, as well as a growing biofuel industry.
Queensland has shale oil resources of 36.7 billion barrels. That's more than 100 times annual Australian oil demand.
Queensland Energy Resources, the leading shale player, is currently assessing technology options, with the possibility of a pilot plant within three years and a long-term aim of producing more than 100,000 barrels a day.
more pdf 18KB
Gearing up for coal seam gas bonanza
Liam Walsh
19 July 2007
The Courier-Mail
SANTOS'S proposed multibillion-dollar liquefied natural gas plant in Gladstone is expected to boost exploration and prices in Queensland's emerging coal seam gas sector.
Market watchers said the development boost would be due partly to the plant providing greater confidence in CSG -- possibly leading to other industrial uses for a resource recovered from coal measures often hundreds of metres underground.
Another factor was the plant sucking up CSG supplies.
But this, in turn, could put upward pressure on prices. Further pressure might come from linking east coast gas supplies to international markets, thanks to the plant's export focus.
The plant is proposing to tap between 170 and 220 petajoules a year from new Santos fields in southern Queensland.
Analysts said total eastern coast gas consumption was now between 650PJ and 660PJ a year.
Graeme Bethune, chief executive officer of advisory firm EnergyQuest, said the amount Santos was taking was "quite huge". If Santos was soaking up that much CSG, he said that left room for market expansion.
more pdf 20KB
Aust reliant on Middle East oil: experts Australia receives more oil from the Middle East than the US does.
Ashley Hall
6 July 2007
Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) News
Oil and its refinery by-products play a fundamental role in just about every part of Australian life, and a large amount of it originates in the Middle East.
Graeme Bethune, chief executive officer of energy advisory firm EnergyQuest, explains.
"Only about 13 per cent of the crude oil that we import comes from the Middle East, but we import increasing amounts of refined petrol and diesel from Singapore and Singapore gets most of its feed stock from the Middle East," he said.
"So if you take account of all that, about a third of our liquid fuels come from the Middle East now."
Mr Bethune says Australia receives more oil from the Middle East than the US does, to make up for declining local output.
"We're getting a little bit of a kick up now through three or four new oil projects, and BHP announced one called Pyrenees that starts in 2010," he said.
more pdf 20KB
Australian drought drives up gas consumption - and prices
Thursday, 24 May 2007
The current drought gripping eastern Australia is responsible for increased gas usage and higher prices, according to a major report released today on oil and gas production for the opening three months of 2007.
The report - by energy advisory group, EnergyQuest - revealed a 20.1% jump in gas production in eastern Australia in the latest March quarter, compared with the same period last year.
“This reflects growth in gas-fired electricity of 67%. Generation from hydro has fallen by 18% and total coal generation has been flat, constrained in Queensland and Victoria by water restrictions,” EnergyQuest CEO, Dr Graeme Bethune, said today.
“Strong demand for gas has also pushed up wholesale gas prices, with average Victorian spot prices up 27% to $3.38 per gigajoule on the previous March quarter,” he said.
more pdf 22KB
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Energy price surge ahead
Peter Hannam and Mathew Murphy
25 May 2007
The Age
ENERGY prices, already spiking because of short-term market shortages, are set to rise further because of drought and maintenance works at power stations, particularly in New South Wales, Resources Minister Ian Macfarlane said.
"There's no suggestion that there's going to be blackouts between now and Christmas," Mr Macfarlane told BusinessDay.
"Certainly, there are going to be higher prices."
The drought is much to blame for the surge in prices, reducing hydro power but also water supplies to some power stations, particularly in Queensland, he said.
Mr Macfarlane, who will meet state energy ministers in Victoria today, also plans to seek details from the National Electricity Market Management Company (NEMMCO) about the timing of maintenance planned for power stations.
Is such work, especially on state-owned plants in NSW "being done in such a way that it doesn't affect the market and aggravate the current situation?" he asked.
The minister's comments come as a report released by energy advisory firm EnergyQuest also blamed the higher wholesale energy prices on the big dry.
more pdf 19KB
2006 Australian Oil and Gas Production and Development Review.
16 April 2007
Presentation by Graeme Bethune to the 2007 APPEA Conference.
ABSTRACT
The Australian petroleum industry is having considerable success in offsetting natural field decline through new developments in existing basins and projects in new basins. The industry is also having great success with less conventional coal seam methane production. In energy terms Australian petroleum production peaked in 2000 and then fell until 2003 due to falling oil production. Since then, and despite continuing falls in oil and liquids production, total production has been increasing towards the 2000 peak.
In 2006 eight new developments came into production: Darwin LNG, three oil and four gas developments. Seven of these developments were in new basins. Looking to the future there are currently over 20 significant petroleum projects with a combined value of over $50 billion either committed or being considered. Between them these could significantly increase Australian production over the next five years, primarily through growing gas production. Replacing falling oil production remains a challenge, as do managing cost increases and skills shortages generally.
more pdf 1.4MB
Changing Dynamics of Australian Oil and Gas
21 February 2007
A presentation given by Graeme Bethune, CEO EnergyQuest to the
Australasian Oil and Gas Conference in Perth
more pdf
Australian gas production up 3.4%, oil production
down 5.5% in 2006
20 February 2007
Natural gas production in Australia grew strongly throughout 2006, according to estimates released today by independent energy research firm, EnergyQuest.
Total gas production for the 12 months reached 1566 petajoules (PJ) – an increase of 3.4% over the previous year.
Oil production, however, dipped to 117.3 million barrels, down 5.5% - or 6.9 million barrels - on 2005. more pdf
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