2015 PESA production and development review
Ross Evans A , David Close A , Brenton Richards A and Rachael Ilett AOrigin Energy Resources Limited
The APPEA Journal 56(1) 515-526 https://doi.org/10.1071/AJ15037
Published: 2016
Abstract
Low oil prices through 2015 challenged oil and gas operators to cut costs and minimise expenditure to survive the long cold winter of low pricing. Oil production decreased more than 10%—relative to 2014—to 128 mmboe for 2015. In 2015, natural gas production of 2,611 PJ was relatively consistent with 2014 production, with the exception of the Bowen and Surat basins, where production more than doubled to over 630 PJ. The primary driver for the increased Bowen and Surat basin output was the first full year of operation of QCLNG and, to a lesser extent, the startup of GLNG in the fourth quarter of 2015.
The start-up of two major LNG operations in Queensland, followed by a third (APLNG) within the first weeks of 2016, is a transformational event for the eastern Australian gas market. As each of the projects has commenced exports during an extremely long—and therefore low-price—LNG market, there is intense market pressure on these projects to improve profitability through efficiency improvements and cost reductions. In contrast to Australia’s other LNG exporters, which are all fed by offshore conventional fields with relatively few wells, the Queensland projects have the opportunity to benefit from constant improvements to upstream operations as they continue to drill hundreds of wells to sustain the LNG operations. North American operators have continuously improved during the past decade of unconventional gas development and this provides a proof of concept that is encouraging for Australia’s aspirants. Effective cost reductions have already been announced by operators in Queensland; maintaining these reductions as the market improves will be critical to the success of the Queensland CSG to LNG projects, and expanding efficient and cost-effective operations to other onshore basins provides an opportunity for the Australian industry-at-large.
Ross Evans has 20 years’ experience in the oil and gas industry, and has worked in many different facets of the industry. In his present role, Ross is responsible for the front-end of Origin’s upstream projects, from exploration through appraisal and into development planning. Prior to this role, Ross was a key part of the successful APLNG CSG to LNG project, from pre-FID through to completion, where he led the exploration, appraisal and development planning for the project. Origin is among the largest companies in Australia by market capitalisation, and is involved in upstream exploration and production, power generation, and energy retailing, principally in Australia and New Zealand. Ross.Evans@upstream.originenergy.com.au |
David Close is presently the Unconventional Exploration Manager and Chief Geologist for Origin Energy in Brisbane. He holds a PhD from the University of Oxford, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar, and a BSc from the University of Tasmania. David worked in Mexico, the US, and Canada for Schlumberger and Apache Canada prior to joining Origin. He has worked in a range of conventional and unconventional exploration roles, and has developed expertise in unconventional resource exploration and evaluation, and quantitative seismic interpretation. Member: PESA, ASEG, SEG, and AAPG. David.Close@upstream.originenergy.com.au |
Brenton Richards is a Senior Geologist with Origin Energy in Brisbane. He has worked for numerous Australian operators on a range of conventional and unconventional oil and gas exploration, appraisal and development projects across Australia and New Zealand. Brenton received his BSc degree from the Queensland University of Technology. Brenton.Richards@upstream.originenergy.com.au |
Rachael Ilett is a Geologist and Petrophysical Specialist with Origin Energy in Brisbane. Rachael has experience in exploration, appraisal and development projects, and has worked across a wide range of assets across Australia and New Zealand, both conventional and unconventional. Rachael received a BSc (Hons) degree from the Queensland University of Technology. Member: FESAus, SPWLA, GSA and PESA. Rachael.Ilett@upstream.originenergy.com.au |
