Lead

A decision on Woodside's $30 billion proposal to develop the Browse gas basin off Western Australia's coast is expected before the end of this year, according to documents from the federal environment department. The department's timeline indicates a final recommendation will be put to the environment minister by mid-to-late 2026, eight years after Woodside first submitted Australia's largest-ever gas project.

The proposed offshore platforms and a 900-kilometre ocean pipeline would produce enough gas each year to power 800,000 homes. Woodside has argued the project would strengthen the state's energy security during the transition to net-zero emissions, a claim supported by modelling it commissioned from Deloitte Access Economics.

Coverage Comparison

Reporting on the project has highlighted two distinct dimensions. One line of coverage focuses on the economic and energy security arguments, drawing on the Deloitte report and Woodside's statements. Another emphasises the environmental stakes, including the project's proximity to Scott Reef, a habitat for endangered pygmy blue whales and a nesting site for green turtles, and its potential contribution to Australia's greenhouse gas emissions.

Both perspectives were carried by ABC Australia, which reported on the economic modelling and the regulatory timeline, as well as the concerns raised by environmental groups.

Key Claims

According to the Deloitte report commissioned by Woodside, Western Australia will fail to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 on its current trajectory. The report found that solar, wind and battery projects would need to be deployed at unprecedented rates to meet the target, requiring renewables to be rolled out at 11 times historical rates. Even then, the report noted, a deployment rate five times larger than historical levels would only reduce emissions by about 50 per cent by 2050, regardless of whether the Browse project proceeds.

The report concluded that Browse itself would not significantly change where WA's emissions would end up by 2050, and that electrification and renewable electricity generation would drive the energy transition in all scenarios. It estimated the project would deliver $147 billion in total economic uplift over its lifetime and pay about $56 billion in tax revenue.

ABC Australia reported that the Browse project is permitted to operate until 2070, beyond Australia's 2050 net-zero target, and would generate an estimated 6.4 to 6.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide annually. The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis estimates this would represent about 4 per cent of Australia's emissions by 2035.

The connected carbon capture and storage project, which would have prevented an estimated 3 to 4 million tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, has been withdrawn. Woodside intends to re-submit it under newly rewritten environment laws that could fast-track approval.

Woodside recently amended its proposal to move the Browse project further from Scott Reef, according to a supplied image. The company also received a boost when Environment Minister Murray Watt signed off last year on permissions allowing the North West Shelf gas plant to operate until 2070, opening the door for Browse, which would use a massive pipeline to send gas from the basin to the Karratha gas plant.

Perspectives

Woodside: The company argues the Browse project would strengthen WA's energy security during the transition to net-zero, citing the Deloitte report's findings that renewable deployment alone would need to accelerate dramatically to meet the 2050 target.

Environmental groups: Groups opposing the project warn that a spill at Scott Reef would be a disaster for the area's wildlife, including pygmy blue whales and green turtles, and they point to the project's emissions and its operation past the net-zero deadline as critical concerns.