Brett Woods, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Beach Energy presented at the recent Energy Club WA dinner, sharing his opinions on the energy sector, including the urgent need for regulatory simplification.
He shared his opinion on excessive approval process currently obstructing project development, noting that a single offshore well requires 42 government approvals, taking up to four years to complete.
"I want to see a change in the mindset, in policy setting, in Australia, to help support drive more projects forward and really reduce the burden and cumbersome nature of our current policy setting," he stated.
The CEO urged the new Labor government to adopt a more efficient approach to project development. He called for annual land releases and the removal of restrictions on seismic surveys. He stressed the importance of natural gas in Australia's energy transition, to support renewable energy integration.
"The Australian people are smart, and they are smart enough to see past the flawed ideology that would cripple our economy for no measurable benefit, and they understand a natural gas supported transition is the only way to secure our standard of living while transitioning to a lower carbon energy system," he said.
Mr Woods spoke about the Mumba Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) project and proudly shared that the project has already prevented 10 million tons of CO2 from entering the atmosphere.
"The fantastic performance of Mumba CCS has helped demonstrate that this technology is viable and extremely effective," he said.
He also highlighted the project's economic viability, noting, "Another key feature of the Mumba CCS project is it stacks up economically with a life cycle cost less than $30 a ton of injected CO2, making it one of the lowest cost CCS projects globally."
Mr Woods shared Beach Energy's strategic focus on increasing domestic energy supply and highlighted the company's significant contributions to the local economy and community, "In the past five years, Beach has spent into the WA economy approximately one billion dollars – that's a lot of jobs, a lot of businesses and a lot of families feeling the benefit of our operations."
He called for policy changes to support the industry, including fast-tracking new energy projects and incentivising investment in supply and infrastructure.
When asked about Beach Energy's approach to the energy transition and domestic market challenges, Mr Woods reiterated Beach Energy 's commitment to decarbonisation and increasing energy supply.
"We are very proud to have invested in the Mumba CCS project... My focus, really, for our organisation in the short to medium term is to deliver more gas," he explained.
He detailed upcoming projects, including the Equinox drill campaign in offshore Victoria and efforts to bring more supply to market from the Cooper Basin.
Mr Woods also highlighted the importance of being a marginal supplier in the market to maximise value and ensure energy availability.
"So, the gas is supplying the gap that is needed, there'll be intermittency that the market has... I'm trying to be the marginal supply so I can maximise value. But also, we need to be able to protect gas supply into that market, because if there isn't gas available, then we will get blackouts," he explained.
He continued to urge the new government to create a stable and supportive regulatory environment for the energy sector.
Completing his presentation on a positive note, Mr Woods said, "I look forward to working with Labor to help deliver the government's future gas strategy and progressing the critical role of natural gas and carbon capture and storage in the energy transition.”