The oil and gas industry has nominated areas for inclusion in the 2020 Offshore Petroleum Exploration Acreage Release, and the Government is now seeking feedback.

The annual acreage release is a key part of the Federal Government’s strategy to encourage petroleum exploration in Australia’s offshore waters.

The consultation process – open until 29 June 2020 – offers an opportunity to comment and provide feedback on the nominated areas for release, highlight how exploration activities might affect stakeholders and/or inform potential explorers of issues or concerns to consider in their planning.

All submissions are expected to be considered by government in determining which areas are made available for bidding as part of the 2020 acreage release.

Information from submissions will be made publicly available unless marked confidential. Once published, potential bidders or explorers can access the information when preparing bids or as part of planning for exploration activities.

 

Areas for consultation:

Feedback is sought on the areas shown in orange on the below map. Detailed maps can be found on the associated pages within the survey.

 

The areas marked in orange have been nominated by petroleum industry stakeholders to be considered for the 2020 acreage release.

Areas nominated for release will not receive endorsement from government until submissions resulting from this consultation process can be considered.

You are encouraged to review the nominated areas on the interactive NOPIMS GIS map. Shapefiles are available at the end of the page under the ‘Related’ heading. If you experience any issues with downloading shapefiles, please email Petroleum.Exploration@industry.gov.au.

 

Next Steps

Submissions will be considered as part of finalising the areas for inclusion in the 2020 acreage release.

If issues raised through the consultation process are considered to be manageable through regulatory approvals processes, the area is likely to be made available for bidding.

The release of acreage does not necessarily mean exploration activities will occur. Exploration companies must bid for a release area and be assessed as a deserving applicant prior to award of a petroleum exploration permit.

Should a permit be awarded, it authorises the holder to apply to the regulator, the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA), for approval to undertake an exploration activity.

Any work or forward planning by companies prior to an official release announcement is done at the commercial risk and cost of individual operators.

The reader should rely on their own inquiries to independently confirm the information and comment on which they intend to act.

Provide comments on potential areas for the 2020 acreage release before 11.59 pm AEST 29 June 2020.

The announcement of the final areas will be communicated via Australian Petroleum News.

Read more about the acreage release process.