Focus turns to Bowen Basin gas
David Kiefer, Arrow Energy
T
he Surat Basin has been Queensland’s natural gas powerhouse – supplying the east coast gas market and underpinning a massive LNG export industry – but the Bowen Basin has a longer gas history and a significant gas future.
International Energy Agency data shows: • Natural gas supplies 22% of energy used worldwide, and makes up nearly a quarter of electricity generation, as well as playing a crucial role as a feedstock for industry. • World natural gas consumption grew by an estimated 4.6% in 2018, its largest increase since 2010 when gas demand bounced back from the global financial crisis. • The growth was driven by growing energy demand and substitution from coal. The switch from coal to gas accounted for over one-fifth of the rise in gas demand. 30
BBMC Yearbook 2019
Natural gas is predominantly methane, and coal seam gas (CSG) has one of the highest proportions of methane of any natural gas. The Bowen Basin is already producing CSG for power generation and industrial use. The Moranbah Gas Project has been producing gas since 2004. Owned 50-50 between AGL and Arrow Energy (Arrow is the operator), it feeds the North Queensland Gas Pipeline that supplies large industrial customers in Townsville, including the Yabulu gas-fired power station.
The Bowen Basin stands, potentially, as Queensland’s next natural gas powerhouse, supplying a valuable transition fuel towards the looming lower-carbon future.
