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Australian Energy Producers Journal Australian Energy Producers Journal Society
Journal of Australian Energy Producers
RESEARCH ARTICLE (Non peer reviewed)

A community’s guide to best practice local content solutions

Shane Charles
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Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise (TSBE), 137 Herries Street, Toowoomba, Qld 4350, Australia. Email: shane@tsbe.com.au

The APPEA Journal 57(2) 410-412 https://doi.org/10.1071/AJ16056
Accepted: 17 March 2017   Published: 29 May 2017

Abstract

One single coal seam gas (CSG) project can have a big effect on a region. When multiple projects are developed simultaneously, the hurdles for regional businesses to jump are many and varied, and each proponent of a CSG project has their own safety standards, pre-qualification requirements, unique systems and timeframes. This paper will look at the Surat Basin as a target area and provide a synopsis of how CSG projects in the region affected local communities. It will explore how a region with an in-depth knowledge of its own business community can work with proponents and contractors to deliver a better product, at a lower cost, with an arguably better safety record and less community interruption. Collected examples will show how a coordinated approach to local content can provide win–win outcomes for communities and industry.

Keywords: contractors, contracts and procurement, local content, pre-qualification, risk, social licence, Surat Basin.

After a successful career in private practice as a lawyer, Shane Charles is currently the Executive Chairman of Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise Pty Ltd (TSBE), a regional economic development organisation. In addition, he holds a number of other positions, including: Director of Energy Resources Australia Limited; President of the Royal Agricultural Society of Queensland; Chairman of Sunrise Way Ltd, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre; Director of AusAsia Exports Pty Ltd. Previous positions held by Shane include Commissioner of the GasFields Commission of Queensland, Chairman of Stanwell Corporation Limited and Chairman of the Endeavour Foundation.