Biggest ever resource deal signed

19 Aug 2009, 6:36 am   -   Source: AAP
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PetroChina will buy $50bn worth of liquefied natural gas from Australia (Getty Images)

PetroChina will buy $50bn worth of liquefied natural gas from Australia (Getty Images)

Australia has signed a record $50 billion export deal with China, agreeing to supply energy giant PetroChina with liquefied natural gas from the Gorgon development off Western Australia.

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Australia has signed a record $50 billion export deal with China, agreeing to supply energy giant PetroChina with liquefied natural gas from the Gorgon development off Western Australia.

The deal, which comes a week after a $25 billion deal to supply gas to India, had been in doubt because of tensions between Canberra and Beijing over the arrest of Rio Tinto executive Stern Hu and the visit to Australia by Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer.

Minister for Resources and Energy Martin Ferguson said the unprecedented deal confirmed Australia's importance as a global energy superpower.

The project will be the biggest single investment ever made in Australia, breaking the record set a few years ago by the $12 billion Pluto LNG project now under construction in Western
Australia.

"We are a country built on foreign investment and we continue to welcome investments that develop our resources for the benefit of all Australians," Mr Ferguson said in Beijing.

"PetroChina is an increasingly important partner in the Australian LNG industry and I hope the relationship will be long and successful."

Creation of 6,000 jobs

The Gorgon project will be a huge boost to Australia's export income, with contracts to sell around $300 billion worth of LNG to customers in Asia and the Pacific over the next 20 years.

It is expected to provide 6,000 jobs at the peak of construction and boost the goods and services sector by $33 billion.

Despite the recent tensions between Canberra and Beijing, Mr Ferguson said the deal represented a "landmark in our relationship with China".

"This agreement has enormous value for the Australian economy and society, generating the wealth we need to continue to develop our resources and technology, and sustain our communities."

 

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