Unions are making a concerted push for Labor to support a domestic gas reservation scheme.
Ahead of the ALP's national conference later this month, Australian Workers Union national secretary Scott McDine told AAP more Australians were starting to realise gas bills are projected to skyrocket even as the nation extracts more gas.
"We should be telling the multinational gas giants: yes, you can extract Australia's gas; yes, you can export it offshore; but you have to reserve a portion for us - that should be ALP policy," Mr McDine said.
Mr McDine said the issue of affordable gas was not only one for consumers but business, especially manufacturers.
"Australians quite rightly expect affordable gas because we are a gas-rich nation," he said.
"One in five heavy manufacturers will close (by 2019) if we don't start reserving a portion of Australia's gas."
The policy has the support of a number of other Labor-affiliated unions, branches and federal MPs. But it remains to be seen whether there are enough backers at the ALP national conference for it to be included in the party's platform.
The draft platform only states the party will promote the "sound, sustainable development of Australia's energy resources" taking into account "the need to ensure security of domestic energy supplies including gas".
Federal Labor resources spokesman Gary Gray has argued intervention in the gas market would dampen investment and jobs.
In June, the West Australian coalition government signed an agreement with the Woodside-led Browse joint venture whereby it will quarantine 15 per cent of production from the state's 65 per cent share of one of the project's three gas fields for the domestic market.
The South Australian Labor government has been critical of domestic reservation saying producers would be more likely to keep the gas in the ground rather than sell below world prices.
The peak gas body, the Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association, says reserving gas will imperil jobs and investment in the sector.
Manufacturer Alcoa has argued that in the absence of governments backing more domestic gas production, a reservation policy is essential for energy security.
