ENERGY INDUSTRIES – AUSTRALIA

Chevron tax ruling to ‘hit investment’

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 22 : 3-May-17

Chevron’s chief financial officer, Patricia Yarrington, has told investors in the US that the oil and gas group may appeal a Federal Court of Australia ruling on the tax status of a $A2.5bn inter-company loan. She warned that the ruling will have implications for international transfer pricing guidelines, while it is likely to impact on future investment in Australia. However, Chevron’s Stephen Green has welcomed the findings of a review which recommended that any changes to the Petroleum Resource Rent Tax should not be retrospective.

CORPORATES
CHEVRON CORPORATION, CHEVRON AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE

States lock away 200 years of gas supply: business

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Original article by Sarah Martin, Anthony Klan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 28-Apr-17

The Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association says the Federal Government’s move to impose LNG export controls could increase the nation’s sovereign risk and discourage investment in exploration and production. APPEA and Resources Minister Matt Canavan have criticised state governments for restrictions on gas exploration, and APPEA estimates that there are sufficient untapped gas reserves in Victoria and New South Wales to meet demand for gas on the east coast for about 200 years.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN PETROLEUM PRODUCTION AND EXPLORATION ASSOCIATION LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENTS

PM orders gas giants: Aussies first

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Original article by Sarah Martin
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 27-Apr-17

The Federal Government will introduce an "Australian Domestic Gas Security Mechanism", which is aimed at ensuring that domestic gas supply is sufficient to meet forecast demand. Resources Minister Matt Canavan will be given the power to block gas exports to ensure that gas users on the east coast have access to sufficient gas. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says the government aims to ensure that the domestic price of gas is affordable and reflects global export prices.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, COCONUT AIRLINES, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, GLADSTONE LNG PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA PACIFIC LNG LIMITED, QUEENSLAND CURTIS LNG PTY LTD, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL

WA minister slams gas pipeline

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 26-Apr-17

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull recently signalled that the Federal Government is considering a proposal to build a gas pipeline linking Western Australia to the east coast. The transcontinental gas pipeline was mooted by former state premier Colin Barnett, but WA Mines Minister Bill Johnston says it would require other states to introduction policies requiring a certain proportion of gas to be reserved for domestic use. Johnston also says the State Government is open to discussions with the mining sector regarding the iron ore levy, although he has ruled out abolishing it.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF MINES AND PETROLEUM, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, ASSOCIATION OF MINING AND EXPLORATION COMPANIES, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, VIMY RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX VMY, TORO ENERGY LIMITED – ASX TOE, CAMECO CORPORATION, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Energy giants to be grilled over tax minimisation tactic

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Original article by Ben Butler
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 26-Apr-17

Executive from major oil and gas producers will appear before the Senate economics reference committee on 28 April 2017. They include executives from Chevron, which recently lost a transfer pricing dispute with the Australian Taxation Office regarding a $A2.5bn inter-company loan. The case centered on the interest rate on the loan made by US-based Chevron to its Australian subsidiary, which is expected to prompt the ATO to issue new guidelines regarding interest rates for such loans.

CORPORATES
CHEVRON CORPORATION, CHEVRON AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, EXXONMOBIL CORPORATION, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, BP PLC, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, AUSTRALIA. SENATE STANDING COMMITTEE ON ECONOMICS, TAX JUSTICE NETWORK, GETUP LIMITED, MINTER ELLISON, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, CLAYTON UTZ

Government may step in, PM warns gas sector

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Original article by Sarah Martin
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 20-Apr-17

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull held further talks with energy industry CEOs on 19 April 2017, as part of the Federal Government’s efforts to resolve the gas crisis. However, the energy groups’ failure to offer new strategies to increase domestic gas supplies prompted Turnbull to raise the prospect of more government intervention in the sector. The Government has also asked the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission to use its inquiry powers to investigate the domestic gas market over the next three years.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP

Santos warns ‘hot air’ inflating gas debate

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Original article by Leo Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 19-Apr-17

Executives from LNG producers will meet with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on 19 April 2017. Santos CEO Kevin Gallagher has cautioned against government intervention to address the gas crisis on the east coast, arguing that it is not the role of governments to "pick winners and losers". He adds that lack of sufficient development of gas resources is the main cause of the crisis. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten believes that the government should step in to resolve the crisis, saying domestic gas users should be prioritised over export customers.

CORPORATES
SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, GLADSTONE LNG PTY LTD, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, AUSTRALIA PACIFIC LNG LIMITED, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, QUEENSLAND CURTIS LNG PTY LTD

$238bn tax shield cushions oil giants

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Original article by Ben Butler
The Australian – Page: 19 & 22 : 13-Apr-17

Data from the Australian Taxation Office shows that Petroleum Resource Rent Tax revenue from oil and gas companies fell to just $A845m in 2015-16, compared with $A1.79bn in 2013-14. Meanwhile, the industry claimed a total of $A238bn in tax deductions for exploration expenditure under carry-forward regulations in 2015-16, compared with just $A970 million in 2003-04. The PRRT is currently the subject of two separate reviews, although oil and gas producers have warned that changes to the tax may deter future investment in Australia.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, CHEVRON CORPORATION, GORGON PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, NICK XENOPHON TEAM, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Shell first into crisis breach to shore up local gas supply

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith, Mark Ludlow
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 12 : 22-Mar-17

Shell Australia will undertake a $A500m gas well drilling program in south-east Queensland. Dubbed Project Ruby, it could comprise up to 161 new wells, which will supply gas to both the domestic and export markets. Shell has also advised that the amount of gas it supplies to the domestic market will increase by 10 per cent in 2017, to more than 75 petajoules. Meanwhile, Shell Australia chairman Andrew Smith notes that it is cheaper to ship gas from the US to Victoria than from Queensland.

CORPORATES
SHELL COMPANY OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, QUEENSLAND. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET, ARROW ENERGY LIMITED, PETROCHINA COMPANY LIMITED, QUEENSLAND CURTIS LNG PTY LTD, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, GLADSTONE LNG PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

LNG exports post $1.9bn record

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 19 & 22 : 30-Jan-17

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that the nation’s revenue from LNG exports rose from $US1.39bn in July 2016 to $A1.9bn in November. Meanwhile, the three LNG plants in Queensland shipped 1.75 million tonnes via the Port of Gladstone in December, compared with 1.5 million tonnes in October. Chevron CEO John Watson has indicated that the second production train at the Gorgon LNG project has reached 90 per cent of capacity, while the third train is likely to commence production in the June 2017 quarter.

CORPORATES
CHEVRON CORPORATION, GORGON LNG, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, AUSTRALIA PACIFIC LNG LIMITED, CONOCOPHILLIPS, PORT OF GLADSTONE, AUSTRALIAN ENERGY MARKET OPERATOR LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, BP PLC, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT